Qur'an 30 for 30 | Season 3
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Juz' 30 with Sh. Yaser Birjas and Dr. Zohair Abdul-Rahman | Qur'an 30 for 30 Season 3
April 30, 2022 • Sh. Yaser Birjas, Dr. Zohair Abdul-Rahman, Sh. Abdullah Oduro and Dr. Omar Suleiman
In the final episode of this Ramadan series, Dr. Omar Suleiman and Sh. Abdullah Oduro, joined by special guests, Sh. Yaser Birjas and Dr. Zohair Abdul-Rahman, explore gems from the thirtieth Juz’ of the Holy Quran.
Download the new eBook "Qur’an 30for30: Seerah Edition" here.
Transcript
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings. As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. Everyone, welcome back to Qur'an 30 for 30. Alhamdulillah, Rabbul Ameen. Before we get started, just a reminder, biddenillah, as we're getting into the very, very last moments, biddenillah, of Ramadan, to please consider, inshallah ta'ala, donating to Yaqeen, as well as VRIC, as well as ICC, and all the other organizations that you see out there, the good causes, inshallah ta'ala. Make your intention to, inshallah ta'ala, give those last donations, and whatever masjid in Australia Dr. Zaheer is with as well, inshallah ta'ala. There you go, you shout them out, alhamdulillah, Rabbul Ameen. So, wherever you can, biddenillah ta'ala, give, inshallah, then do so, and to please keep us on your du'a, and subhanAllah, we're getting down to the very last moments, and obviously, you know, this has been such a beautiful program for us to come together on a nightly basis, alhamdulillah, and we have with us none other than Shaykh Yasir Rajas, alhamdulillah, Rabbul Ameen, my colleague, and someone who I get to spend so much time with, alhamdulillah, Rabbul Ameen, in Ramadan here at the Valley Ranch Islamic Center, and alhamdulillah, you've been benefiting from Shaykh Yasir in many different ways, alhamdulillah, not just through the work at VRIC, but obviously, even with the late-night reflections. Shaykh Yasir, how's it going? Alhamdulillah, Rabbul Ameen, alhamdulillah. I'm glad that you're back to your office, alhamdulillah. I was about to, see, you beat me to an office pun, you know, you beat me to it. It was fun and meaningful, alhamdulillah, experience. So, Shaykh Abdullah and Shaykh Yasir, I don't know which one of you wants to get rid of me more. Shaykh Abdullah, you have to bear with me on 30 for 30, Shaykh Yasir has to bear with me physically. I mean, he could get away from me if he didn't stay in my office so much, but he has to bear with me physically. I'm not sure which one of you wants to shed me more, but we're going to solve this on the ping pong table. So, we're broadening the ping pong competition. So,
Shaykh Abdullah, Shaykh Yasir, and myself, inshaAllah, we're going to have to have a three-way ping pong tournament, inshaAllah. One day, inshaAllah, after Eid, inshaAllah. No, no, before Eid, Shaykh, what do you mean? Before Eid, you've got to do it before Eid. This weekend, Shaykh. InshaAllah. We have Dr. Zuhair, alhamdulillah, from Australia, alhamdulillah, one of our favorites. Before I used to even joke on this program, I used to talk about your, you know, being in very strange places and kangaroos in the background, all that kind of stuff, and now you're like sitting in front of a closet. I'm very confused by this Ramadan. I'm like, not even going to try to find something. Well, no, it's Ramadan, the kangaroos, they're fasting, they're praying the Qiyam al-Layl, and I think they're scared of me. By the way, have you guys ever eaten kangaroo meat? No. I'm not interested. I'm not interested. So is kangaroo meat good? To be honest, alhamdulillah, I prefer other meats. They're beautiful to look at, though, very majestic creatures how they jump, subhanAllah. It's a sight to behold. InshaAllah you guys visit Australia one day. InshaAllah. InshaAllah. Tariq Mashaikh, before we get started, I've got two questions for both of you. All right, so we're gonna, this is gonna be, let's see who can answer this first. All right, first one is, what do cats eat for suhoor? Shaykh Abdullah, you should know this. What does the cat eat for suhoor? I should know this? You got cats and birds and everything hanging out. Yeah, cats, fish cakes, fish pancakes with some... Your cat eat fish?
Something to do with milk, I think. Shaykh Yonatan, you got anything? They eat your tongue. Actually, Shaykh, yeah, you have your cat. That's... And then you can't speak at all after because you're tired, you just want to get over with it. Dr. Zaheer, what's your answer? It's got to be something to do with milk, I don't know. No, it's mice crispy treats. Mice, ah! Something to do with milk, there you go. You are close, I don't know why. Shaykh Abdullah's fish thing, the cats eating fish is interesting. I think it's... Then we have an Australia one, and this one's super easy, all right? If a kangaroo married a cow and they had a child, what would the name of the child be? Dr. Zaheer, come on. I got it, I got it, a kangamoo. You got it, mashaAllah, Allahu akbar. Allahu akbar, mashaAllah, he got it, all right. I like that. Oh, subhanAllah. There we go. I knew your Australia would get you, alhamdulillah. InshAllah, we all see a kangamoo in Jannah together, bi-nina ta'ala. I don't know. I'm not interested in that. Shaykh Abdullah, Shaykh Abdullah, Shaykh Abdullah. I'm not interested in that. Shaykh Abdullah, I'm not interested, I'm not interested. I've got better things to do in Jannah, mashaAllah. Yeah, you can hang out with the kangaroos in Jannah, Shaykh. We're going to be... May Allah grant us all Jannah, ya Rabb. Ameen, ameen, ameen. Ta'ala, mashaAllah. It's been a pleasure, obviously, to be with you, alhamdulillah, for 30 for 30. And we are at Juz 30, and I think, inshaAllah ta'ala, we'll each share some brief reflections,
but then have a discussion on it, because obviously Juz Amma is the most important. Juz to understand and to really connect with, because of how frequently recited it is. So inshaAllah ta'ala, we'll get started and share a few reflections. Bismillah, alhamdulillah, wa salatu wasalamu ala Rasulullah, wa ala anhihi wa sahbihi wa man wala. SubhanAllah, this Juz of Juz Amma that is so frequently recited is the most vivid in regards to Yawm al-Qiyamah of any Juz in the Quran. And it's something, subhanAllah, where it's not just that it's so vivid in terms of Yawm al-Qiyamah, you would think because of the shortness of the verses, then the scenes would not be so descriptive, but it's actually, you know, the most descriptive if you take the entire Juz together. Not only that, but it finds ways to bring about the connection of the end of times here and the beginning of times there. The reality of our existence here and the reality of our existence there. The people talking and discussing, it starts off with Amma yatasa'aloon anil naba'il azeem. What are they talking about? What are they discussing? What are they disputing about? What's the news, right? And the news is, of course, this naba' al-azeem, this great news is about that great day and the standing before Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And not only that, but it brings in every dimension of life. You know, I think this is actually one of the most profound elements of the Quran in regards to Mecca Quran, though the laws that govern societal interactions, you know, would come later on, obviously in Medina, once you had Islam governance and society, right? But in Mecca, before the laws were refined, you still had waylun anil mutafafeen, you still had the warnings of the cheating with weights. You still had ra'ayta ladhi yukaddi wa bi-ddin fa-thalika ladhi ya'du'u al-yateem wa la
ya'hudwa ana ta'amil miskeen, the one who, you know, fails in regards to the orphans or cheats the people or, you know, does not treat the miskeen, the poor person, right? So a person who fails in their treatment to the marginalized of society. And you have the notion of wa'idha al-maw'udat wa su'idat bi-ayyi dhan bin qutilat, right? The one who buries their daughter alive. So these societal forms of dhulm are also covered, and sadaqa is covered in the broader sense. And, you know, I think that the powerful connection there to Yawm al-Qiyamah is the fact that even though they did not have the defined laws of Islam yet, the idea that you should be standing before your Lord on the Day of Judgment asked about these things. You know where you could have done better. And, you know, at that point when the Day of Judgment is unfolding before your eyes, right? Every single person, alimat nafsan ma qaddamatu akhar, like you know at that point, you know, what it is that you brought forth. You have an idea as to what you would be questioned about by your Lord. So it connects all of these societal and then the individual elements, right? Salah and, you know, being conscious of Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la alone. And then it connects the community that is confused and the community that works together. So you have the community that is, you know, lost and in confusion, amma yatas'aloon, and then you have the community of wal-'asli inna al-insana la fee fusri illa allatheena aamina wa amila salihata wa tawasil wa haqqa wa tawasil wa salih. Right? Those people that work together. You have the arrogant tyrants who did not fear consequences. And then you have ashab al-ukhdoot, right? These people that are thrown into a ditch, into a fire only to be transported into this great jannah that Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la talks about. And that is the great foes. That is the great success, the ultimate triumph that Allah Azawajal mentions.
So SubhanAllah, you have a connection to every element of the Day of Judgment. And you know, just one narration that I'll share inshaAllah ta'ala and pass it to our Shaykh, Shaykh Yasir, when the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam says, man sarrahu, whoever wishes an yanzura ila yawn qiyam, to see the Day of Judgment. Whoever wishes to see the Day of Judgment, right? Like if you really want to know what it looks like, SubhanAllah, this is of course, you know, the strongest way to emphasize that with your worldly limitations you can connect to what is currently unseen. The Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam said, let them read Surah al-Takwir, Surah al-Infitar, and Surah al-Inshiqaq. And so these surahs that come in the beginning of the Juz, al-Takwir, al-Infitar, al-Inshiqaq, they give you the full visual of the Day of Judgment. Or you know, and especially the happenings, right? And really what ends up taking place here, SubhanAllah, is that everything around you is falling apart and then it's you. It hyper focuses on you. And that's SubhanAllah's profound point, Shaykh Yasir, maybe you could pick up on and share your reflections as you go into your own reflections on the Juz. It's very interesting because Surah al-Naba is, what are they talking about? And then at Takwir, at al-Infitar, al-Inshiqaq is you're looking around and you're looking at the skies, the skies are being ripped apart. You're looking at the mountains, the mountains are crumbling. You're looking at the seas, the seas are bursting. You're looking at the ground under you, it's shaking. You're looking at the people, the people are running and fleeing and no one has time for you. And really it hyper focuses on you, right? SubhanAllah, and then it's like, okay, now you answer these questions. Now what have you done for yourself? What have you done for yourself? You know, to prepare for this mighty moment before Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, like you no longer can depend on anything else to stabilize except for the deeds. The deeds are the ship that you are taking with you to sail to Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala
to meet him on this mighty day. So it's a very like the whole, everything is falling apart. Now focus on yourself, focus on yourself and are you ready for that moment before Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. And of course, you know, the Juz does of course tell us about people who do indeed succeed, people who do indeed prepare themselves and people who, despite having seen the hardest things that this world could throw at them, see the beauty of what Allah has prepared for them in the next life and that makes any hardship in this life worth it. So Shaykh Yasir, please do take over. Fadlashaykh. Alhamdulillah rabbil alameen, salallahu wa sallam wa baraka to our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his companions. We have been in this life before and after. So absolutely what you are saying in regards to the intensity of the description of these events in the Quran is unbelievable and specifically it's much more vivid in Juz Amma, the last Juz of the Quran. Actually, before I get into some of the events that were mentioned in the Juz itself, something about Juz Amma in particular. Alhamdulillah, I have had the pleasure really of teaching Juz Amma multiple times, particularly in Valley Ranch in the past maybe a few years. I did that twice, honestly, because of the beauty that I really found in teaching this Juz. It's unbelievable beauty, you can't find really anywhere else probably. And as a result, or at least before that also, when we were young, we were asking our mentors, our teachers, as we were youth really, as we were preparing to become, alhamdulillah, into the youth leadership and so forth, we asked them what is it that we need to prepare for and what can we do to prepare our knowledge and our content as we speak to other people. They always remind us with two things that are very important for you to study and learn. So number one, you need to memorize Juz Amma, you have to memorize Juz Amma. And number two, if you can study and memorize the four Hadith of Imam al-Nawawi rahimah Allah ta'ala.
If you do that, you will provide or you will actually equip yourself with material, with content that can help you in whatever position, whatever stance, whatever situation you're in. Whether you're asked to give a khatira, give a khutba, give a talk, give a dars, a connection, reflection, whatever that is, Juz Amma Subhanallah can give you that material and that content is so intense and it's so beautiful at the same time. So indeed, for those who would like to engage into da'wah, into giving khatiras and talks, whether you are at your MSA chapter or youth program, but even your masjid, even your household, Juz Amma is really the key to start with insha'Allah tabarak wa ta'ala. What do we find in Juz Amma? As I was teaching tafseer in different times and specifically Juz Amma tabarak as well too, I came to realize and maybe understand that concept in the Arabic language, that concept being an animated language. The Arabic language is so animated that if you cannot visualize what you're reading and what you're saying and what you're listening to, you will have a hard time really describing it, a hard time to understand it. The Arabic language was extracted from the environment. When the Arabs spoke, they visualized things and they saw things and even they heard voices and sounds and as a result they gave them names based on that kind of personal experience. And that's why if you look at Juz Amma subhanAllah, everything is so descriptive in a way that if you cannot really visualize it, it's hard to get the intensity of the ayah itself. So for example, when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala speaks about was sama'i wa ta'arak, speaks about the heavens and ta'arak, ta'arak, pounding sounds obviously. Now regardless of the contemporary discoveries of what kind of star that is, but the fact that you have to always hear that sound of pounding, it's reflective on the word itself,
it has its meaning as well too. Idha al-sama'un fatarat, idha al-sama'un shaqqat, when the sama'a, the sky, rips apart, when it falls apart, when the sky starts falling, when this and that, look at subhanAllah, it's the intensity of these events as Allah describes in the Quran, it's the modern day of watching something unfolding in front of your eyes. Today people they watch movies, they would like to watch trailers, they would like to watch animation in order for them to connect with certain concepts, and Juz Amma just did this here in such a very short space in the Quran, you know every surah is, the shortest surah obviously, but each surah in itself has those profound meaning and principles. I've learned also from Juz Amma that Juz Amma is full of praise, it's a celebration of the praise of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, sabiha isma rabbika al-a'la, praise the name of your Lord who is the most high, allathee khalaqa fasawwa, the one who created and he made it well, so Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is praising himself, so there's a lot of celebration of his praise subhanahu wa ta'ala. In Juz Amma we find also introduction to his greatness, to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala speak about his greatness, wa shamsi wa dhuhaha wa al-qamari idha al-tala, speak about his greatness through his creation, then how many times Allah speak about how he created time, wa al-asr, wa al-dhuhaha, wa al-fajr, he talked about his magnificent creation, al-shams, the night, the day, the moon, the stars, all these amazing things, Allah azza wa jal is introducing us to his greatness through his creation subhanahu wa ta'ala. Then there is an interesting window in Juz Amma into the Arab culture and the time of the Arabs in Mecca, so Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is telling us about things that the Arabs used to practice and one of them, which is one of my favorite subhanallah introduction to the Arab culture tradition, which is one of the highlights of our deen, ihsan, doing kindness to other people with excellence and perfection, particularly to those who are most vulnerable, al-yateem, so there's many ayat in Juz Amma where Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala is referring to al-yateem, fa amma al-yateema fala taqqar, wa amma al-sa'ila fala tanhar, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, wa hadaynahu al-najdain falaqtahama al-aqaba wa madrakama al-aqaba, that we have guided him to care for the orphan, the needy and so on. There are so many principles in Juz Amma that gives us an idea on how the Arab society lived and how it looked like, so that at least we distance ourselves from these bad habits and bad traditions and create a different way through the Qur'an, the words of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So in summary, Juz Amma is just a journey, really. You start from one surah, throughout all the way to the end, and every single surah, it just has a window for you to see this world, the hereafter, the culture, the past, and also in the future. Wallahu'am. Sheikh Nazak Allakhair, would you say that Juz Amma is a summary of the Qur'an in a sense, like it brings all of these themes together but it gives you snapshots? I would say it actually summarizes one of the major principles of the Qur'an, which is the theological aspect of it, the aqidah aspect of it. Speaking about Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, such as, Qul huwa Allahu ahad, or Qul ya ayyuhal kafirun, for example, and also speaks about the events of the hereafter. And the principle of the Meccan era and the period is to establish faith. So Juz Amma is literally about establishing faith in three concepts. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the Day of Judgment, and the credibility of the Prophet Muhammad salallahu alayhi wa sallam, such as, wa ad-duha, alam nashruh laka sadrak, and so on. Juz Nazak Allakhair, Sheikh, wa Allahi barak fikum. I think what you brought in this element of, you know, the praising of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So as unstable as the things that we put our trust in are, and as much as everything around us starts to fall apart, and as vulnerable as we are, sabihis marabik al a'la, right?
Like Allah azawajal is elevated above all of that, you know? So that is part of His praise, is that He is completely free of the imperfections that are found in everything and everyone besides Him subhanahu wa ta'ala. You know if I add one more thing? Sheikh, subhanahu wa ta'ala, part of the praise as well, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, even He praises His work in Juz Amma. He praises His work in terms of His creation, in terms of His, you know, His power, the display of the power that's going to happen on the Day of Judgment. In addition to that, He is subhanahu wa ta'ala showing us this praise of the ibadah, the salihin. Innal muttaqina ma faaza hadhaa'iqa wa anaba. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala describes the event when people go into Jannah, that description I made it subhanahu wa ta'ala multiple times in my tafsir, and it never fails to bring those emotions to it. Like the event, the festivity of that day, innal muttaqina ma faaza. For the righteous one there is ma faaza, hadhaa'iqa wa anaba, speaking about the gardens and the fruits that they're going to receive. And subhanahu wa ta'ala, the description of that event in itself, it just is unbelievable. Look into it and in comparison to matters of this dunya, it's just a beautiful sight to imagine insha'Allah wa ta'ala. Jazakum Allah khair, Shaykh. So bismillah, Shaykh Abdullah, as we've talked about the stability or the instability of everything around us, and we've talked about the glory, tasbih, of He who is completely beyond all of these imperfections and vulnerabilities. Take us away, Shaykh Abdullah. Bismillah wa salatu wa salamu ala rasulullah wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa man wala amma ba'du. Really, Juz Amma, I remember subhanAllah, one of my mentors was telling me, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is just really testing your, you know, iman bil ghayb. He's really testing your belief and what he says and realizing that a lot of what he's talking about, giving descriptions of things that you would never be able to fathom.
And at the same time, he's telling you about yourself in regards to that. So when you're looking at subhanAllah, you as a human being, as bashar, as someone that Allah has created as a form of His creation, the most noble of creation, but then he introduces you to other forms of creation in Jannah or other forms of creation in the hellfire with the same asma' al-mushtarak, the same names that may be in this life, such as laban and ma' milk and water and dhahab and lu'lu and gold and pearls and fruits, fawakih. And interesting, the word fawakih comes from fakiha, wuhume yatafakahu bi insaan. And fawakih means it's fruits in Arabic. But the verb that it's extracted from is that which is one enjoys, you know, so a noun was given from the verb of enjoyment. And Jannah, subhanAllah, I remember one of my mentors, he said, man, we're going to go to Jannah. And he was like, I didn't understand Arabic. He was like, kutufu hadaniya man, kutufu hadaniya. And I'm like, what do you he said, man, the fruits are going to be coming down to you, sheikh. You're going to be reclining on velvet couches, chilling in front of people, mutaqabileen, smiling and fruits are just going to come down to you. I don't know if it's going to be, you know, just however it is, just the fact that you will be in total bliss. And that's what Ibn Qayyim, you know, he mentions, subhanAllah, and he talks about there's no total bliss except in Jannah. No total, just 100% bliss, na'imun muqeem, total bliss. So, you know, Juz Amma is amazing. What I want to really talk about is the reality of us as human beings. And Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala really just hits home as he does in every verse. You know, he talks about in the chapter of Al-Inshaqaq, when Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala swears by his creation,
he swears by numerous events and he swears by his creation, you know, and the interaction of creation, therefore forming an event. Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala talks about in Al-Inshaqaq where he says, إِذَا السَّمَاءُ اُنشَقَّتْ وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ وَإِذَا الْأَرْضُ مُدَّتْ وَأَلْقَتْ مَا فِيهَا وَتَخَلَّتْ وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ Allah says, when the sky is ripped apart, obeying its Lord as it rightly must, when the earth is leveled out and casts out its contents and becomes empty, obeying its Lord as it rightly must, and then he says here, يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ كَدَحًا فَمُلَاقِينَ O mankind, indeed you are laboring towards your Lord with a great exertion and will meet it. This verse is amazing because Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala is saying, look, all of you are Kadih. And Kadih, it really means like سَاعٍ إلى شيء تسعى إلى شيء ما You are going somewhere. There is a toil, there is an effort that you are exerting and it's going to something. The question is, is it going to be to that which is beneficial for you in this life and the next? Or is it going to be something that is not beneficial for you in this life and the next? To where something you may perceive is beneficial for you in this life, but it's a temporary solution to a long term problem. That's why Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala says فَمُلَاقِيهِ That you will meet your Maker. All of us here have a universal responsibility and that is Understanding وَمَا خَلَقَتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَى إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونَ That I have not created the jinns and spirits except that they worship me. That universal responsibility is to answer the question, Why am I here and what does that mean? So Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala is saying that look, in the course, inshallah, you have that attentive nature of wanting to find out.
And throughout that journey, you're going to be working towards something. Understanding that one needs to take a step back and say, Okay, what am I really working towards? What am I making an effort to doing? Why am I here and what efforts am I making in life? Because Allah is assuring you that you will surely meet Him. فَمُلَاقِي Then Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala continues on to talk about those that are successful and those that are not successful in regards to meeting Allah. الشاهد The most important point that I want to capitalize on here is that the Prophet ﷺ is teaching us the means and the method to obey Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala and throughout this process, you will make mistakes, but it's the struggle that Allah Subhanu wa ta'ala loves. Looking at the end of the tunnel and knowing that you want to meet Him. You know, it was mentioned by the Prophet ﷺ that he said, قَالَ جِبْرِيلُ يَا مُحَمَّدُ The Prophet ﷺ said that, Jibreel said to him, يَا مُحَمَّدُ عِشْ مَا شِتْ فَإِنَّكَ مَيِّتْ Live as you wish because you will die. وَأَحْبِبْ مَا شِتْ فَإِنَّكَ مُفَارِقُهُ And love what you will for verily you are going to separate from it. وَعْمَلْ مَا شِتْ فَإِنَّكَ مُلَاقِي And do as you wish for verily you are going to meet Him. So really thinking about what am I doing in this life and am I strengthening my nafs as we talked about, am I strengthening myself to where when I meet Allah ﷻ He's pleased with me. I'll leave you with the beautiful statement of Fudaila bin Ayyad. Fudaila bin Ayyad is someone that SubhanAllah, an aesthetic from the imam of the Tabi'een and I love, personally I love him, Abdullah ibn Mubarak because they were not people of this life, man. They were not people of this life, meaning that whatever they did, it was the akhirah. How is this going to help me in the akhirah? He asked this, he asked a companion a question. And Fudaila bin Ayyad, as some narrations mention, he was a highway robber. He was known to be a highway robber, Muslim, but then he came, if you have an opportunity to read his story, the verse in Surah Tahadeed changed his life, you have an opportunity to read it, it's amazing.
But he asked a question, you know there are some people when you see them, they remind you of Allah ﷻ. Really, they remind you about Allah ﷻ. Fudaila bin Ayyad asked an individual, He said, how much do you have? Meaning how old are you? The individual said, 60 years. Listen to his answer. I think I mentioned this numerous times on 30 for 30, 30 for 60, I don't know. He said, 60 years you are on your way to your Lord. Look at that answer. For 60 years you are on your way to your Lord. You know, and the man said, inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajioon. I'll stop here, but mashallah, Fudaila bin Ayyad, mashallah, it's a beautiful statement for us to really think about. We don't know when Allah ﷻ is going to take us. It's up to you. You know you're going to meet Him. What are we doing in this life? What efforts are we making to where when we meet Him, He's pleased with us. May Allah ﷻ bless us in this beautiful month of Ramadan and allow this Quran to be a nur of our chest and a spring of our hearts to bring forth that which is fruitful in actions, inshallah. Jazakumullahu khair, Shaykh Abdullah. SubhanAllah, it's like you're tumbling and you're not going to stop the speed of the journey. You're not going to stop the fact that you reach this inevitable point. You can get your car right. You can get your animal right. You can stabilize yourself, get yourself still and take control of the horse, take control of the vehicle, right, on the way to Allah ﷻ. And you know, subhanAllah, the most recited part of Juz Amma, of course for us, are the last three qulths. And that is of course our daily recitation, you know, in the morning, in the evening, and in different times. So Dr. Zuhair, what can you tell us about the end of Juz Amma, which is of course effectively for us the end of our recitation of the Quran. Fadlashaykh.
Alhamdulillah bi'al alamin, wa salatu wa salam wa rasulullah wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa jibrail wa ma ba'd. So subhanAllah, the ma'uwidh attain as you mentioned, is a very profound part of the Quran, very significant portion of the Quran, very frequently recited by believers across the world in their salawat, but also instructed by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. And there's a deep point to reflect on this. How many times are we meant to be reciting this portion of the Quran in our daily life? So you have three times in the morning, you have three times in the evening, you also have three times after every salawat as well, as is narrated to us from the Sunnah, and then you have three times before going to bed. So this is a very significant portion of the Quran. And I think it's a beautiful thing to reflect on if we see it as like an epilogue, like an epilogue to the Quran. If we see Surah Al-Fatiha, which was at the beginning, as an introduction or a preface, that dua for guidance, then we see the ma'awwidatayn as like the epilogue, at the end of this journey through the Quran, all the gems and the jewels and the light that you've been able to collect. And I put to the audience and to myself as well, in this month of Ramadan, we've journeyed through the Quran. We were in this beautiful bubble of Ramadan, and we gained the treasures, bi-idhnillahi ta'ala. We listened to the lectures here. May Allah bless all of you, subhanAllah, of taking us through this journey of the Quran, and we've gotten these treasures. And now the ending point is the ma'awwidatayn. And there's some beautiful contrast between the beginning and the end of the Quran. The Quran starts with the dua, and it also ends with the dua. The ma'awwidatayn is a dua. It's a dua asking Allah for protection from evil, both of those surahs. And the beginning of Surah Al-Fatiha is a dua for goodness, for khair, which is hidayah. The key to all goodness in this world is hidayah.
And then the end of the Quran is asking Allah to protect us from evil, and the source of evil, and the worst of all evil. So you see that beautiful contrast there, and you see that the Quran is actually between, the Quran is between two duas to Allah, azwajan. Now, I want to, wa lillahi al-matul al-a'la, give us an idea, an understanding here to reflect on, for us to understand the significance of why end with the ma'awwidatayn. You know, SubhanAllah, if you think about, you know, you have a parent who's raising, or two parents who are raising, you know, their children. And in that time, they're wanting to create that kind of bubble around them. They're giving them good teaching, and, you know, they're giving them good advice, and they're giving them tarbiyah, and education until they're growing up, and they're wanting to protect them in that period of time. But there comes a time where the parent knows, the child is going to have to go out into the world, go out for their first day of school, or go out then to university, or to college, and to move away for the first time, get their first job, et cetera, et cetera, getting married, and whatnot. At that moment, usually is the time where the parents feel this sense of fear, that this child is now going to go out into the world, and encounter so many things that they could encounter. And they're hoping, and they're wishing, that all the teaching that they gave them, for their entire life at that point, is going to be beneficial for them. And oftentimes you find, especially that kind of stereotypical archetypal mother, the loving mother who embraces that kind of protective embrace of their child, making dua to Allah for their protection, advising them to, you know, be careful, you know, look two ways before you cross the road. This is something that is just part of human nature, that when there's this departure from a situation, there's then the fear of what will happen once you leave that bubble that has been there, or that situation, or that home,
whatever it may be. And so seeing the Quran is this, that SubhanAllah, and I hope InshaAllah, we've all done our Khatm al-Quran, and we see now at this point, we've journeyed through the Quran, and we've been in that environment, in the Tarbiyah that Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah has been training our nafs through the Quran, has been training our souls, and we've been gaining so much through this Quran. And now we come to the end, and Allah says, Qul, say, after gaining all of this, and now we come out of Ramadan, and we come out of Ramadan now, the thing in our head should be, we've gained so much, and there's going to be forces outside there that's going to want to take it all away from us. Those things that we gained in our heart of Iman, and of light, and of treasures, and of gems, there's going to be these forces of evil that are going to try and take it away from us. And so this is the point to then come back to this ma'awwidh attain, and to realize we have to ask Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala for protection. And Surah al-Falaq, Qul a'udhu billah bil falaq, is a, this Surah, is asking Allah for protection from external evil, bin sharri ma khalaq, whatever has been created, and there's particular intervention. And then Surah an-Nas is for the internal evil, as Al-Baqa'i mentions, that this is asking Allah for protection from internal evil, waswas al-khannas, the retreating whisperer, and that whispering that comes from the shaytan, or it can come from the masjid, whatever evil whispering is there. And so SubhanAllah, you have this Surah comprising of all the evil that you may encounter as we come out of Ramadan, we should run back to this ma'awwidh attain, that sunnah in our life, of constantly coming back to this. And I'll end with this point. Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah in Bida'ul-Fawa'id, and in other places as well, he reflects on what is the reality of isti'adah. When we say a'udhu billah, when we actually take protection in Allah, what does that mean?
Ibn al-Qayyim rahimahullah gives the example, it's a beautiful example. He gives the example of a child that runs to his parent when he's afraid. And you know, when you see a child that becomes afraid of something, or encounters something unknown, they immediately run back to their parents, and they hold tight to their parent. That moment captures the heart that should be in the case of the believer, that engages in isti'adah to Allah Azawajal. That when you encounter, whatever it is you might encounter, whatever it is you may fear that you may be encountering in this world as you come out of Ramadan, of temptations, of difficulty, of hardship, of tribulation, of whatever it may be, things that will challenge the tawakkul that you gained in this month, things that will challenge the sabr that you gained in this month, things that will challenge the ibadah that you gained in this month, you run back to Allah Azawajal. And there's a beautiful psychology point actually about this, where there's this radius of safety around the parent that the child will explore their environment around, and they won't go too far away from the parent. And actually some psychologists even actually link this, non-Muslims, to the tawaf around the Ka'bah. And this is the idea that the believer explores the world, but always comes back to Allah at all moments, in the morning, after all five daily prayers, in the evening, and before night, we turn back to these surahs, ask Allah to protect us from any evil, and from those who will try to take away from everything we gained in this month of Ramadan. Jazakumullah khair. So beautiful. Jazakumullah khair. I just wanna hear, mashaAllah, every time you come on, mashaAllah, the flow of your research shows. May Allah bless you. And to everyone that hasn't read Dr. Zuhair's papers on yaqeen, alhamdulillah, they're some of the most beautiful papers, mashaAllah. I'm still writing, alhamdulillah, and we love having you on. And I could tell, Shaykh, and I know I've been around Shaykh Yasir enough to know when he just like, he got something. So Shaykh Yasir, what do you wanna reflect on?
I know what Zuhair was talking about got to you somehow, Shaykh Nasser. What do you have for us? You know, I love talking about kids and parenting and all that stuff and so on. And that's somehow a principle that creating that perimeter around the, around, you know, your parents, is so interesting. It reminds me, of course, when kids go, when you go to the park with your children and they go to the playground, for example, they go to explore. And they go through all these challenges, right? And they even risk going up, you know, the slide, for example, versus down the slide and all the stuff and so on. But then the unique thing that these kids, every time they go this far, they remember. So they go back again to see if mom is still there. And then when they feel at ease, they go back again to explore again. But SubhanAllah, this concept, it just hit me just like, that's exactly what we really do. We go straight away from Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, exploring our own self, our own life. But then we remember, oh my God, oh my God, where's my safety? So you go back again to the center to see Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. So that really touched me very much, SubhanAllah. We truly create that perimeter around our safety, which is Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. But we're humans, like kids. We go away to explore. We make mistakes. We probably even hurt ourselves. And then SubhanAllah, come to see if mom is still there. And if it's not there, it is really, really scary. And that's a big concern for those who stray away from Allah Azza wa Jal. And then when they turn back to Him, they expect Him to still be there for them. I mean, you strayed so much so that He went Subhanahu wa ta'ala away from you because you chose to distance yourself so far. So it's a very, very heartwarming concept, but at the same time, Allah is so scary when you see yourself as being that vulnerable little one who strayed away from the perimeter. And then now you want to come back again like nothing ever happened. So be careful when you do that, Allah Allah. SubhanAllah, Shaykh, as if like the beginning of the Quran,
shouldn't have doubts, stay with the guidance, believe in Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, establish your prayer, give charity, have certainty in the hereafter. So like no doubt, focus on the day. And then at the end, it's like you're asking Allah for protection. You know, like, don't let it leave me, you know, and then to protect you from the seen and the unseen of the evil that could cause you to think that there's any comfort in any, any, any fulfillment away from the one who created you. SubhanAllah. Shaykh Abdullah, Bismillah, what you got for us? No, no, I was just thinking, mashallah, to, I think to camelback, not piggyback, but to camelback. That's what I was saying, is like, you know, imagine that kid, if his mom was calling, mom was calling and they're like, I just want to play with my friends. And then mom didn't think he was there. So mom leaves. And then when he goes back to where mom was, he can't find mom. How scared will he be? How scared will he be? So when we, لَتَكُنُوا كَالَّذِينَ نَسُوا اللَّهَ فَأَنسَاهُمْ أَنفُوسَهُمْ The ones that forgotten about Allah, Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala will cause them to forget about themselves. There's a limited time. So when you, you know, you continue on on those deeds and you don't turn back to Allah, you don't go to see how mom is doing and you come back and she's not there. That's when things are really, really hit you. And it may be too late. It may be too late. You know, so may Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala make us of those that are attentive to what we're doing. Jazakumullah khair. Beautiful, beautiful reflections. I think obviously as we come to the end of this panel, the idea is Allah Azawajal calls us back to him constantly. The fact that we have Ramadan, the fact that we have these seasons, the fact that we have these opportunities, Allah Azawajal is calling you. وَتُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا
Right? All of you turn back to Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala and each one of us. تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ تَوبَةً نَصُوحًا Turn back to Allah with a sincere repentance. And the fact that, you know, you're here, you had this Ramadan, Allah gave you a month, Allah gave us all a month, an opportunity to reflect and to connect. And biddenillahi ta'ala I think that we would all agree that, you know, on your last moments of Ramadan, تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ You know, we end with istighfar, we end with seeking forgiveness and we end with repentance, renewing our repentance and resolve that we won't return to those things that keep us away from Him. So we pray that Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala makes the Qur'an, the Qur'an, our anchor. The Qur'an has to be our anchor. And we pray that that connection remains beyond Ramadan as well. Allahumma ameen. JazakumAllah khayran masha'ikh. It's been an amazing journey with you always, Shaykh Abdullah. You know, alhamdulillah, I mean, we do this every Ramadan for the last three years and it's been absolutely blessed and beautiful. And Shaykh Yasir, masha'Allah, I get to spend more time with you in Ramadan than the whole year, so alhamdulillah, I mean, that's also an anchoring factor for me, so may Allah bless you. And Dr. Zuhair, alhamdulillah alhamdulillah ameen, khitamu wa misk. You got to come on and give us your sweet words, masha'Allah. We don't want to see, I don't, I personally am not looking forward to seeing a kangamu in Jannah, but I would love to see you in Jannah. I know if we get to like an area of Jannah and like you suddenly see kangamus, like that's Zuhair's place. May Allah gather us all in a Firdaus Al-A'ya. And please make du'a to those of you that have been watching for everyone behind the scenes. Make du'a for especially the Yaqeen team. There are people subhanAllah that are even operating the stream, the people that are doing the graphics, the people that are making sure that, you know, every little detail is done right so that you could have enjoyed your Ramadan and the creation of the content and the putting the content out there and the keeping up with things and the website maintenance
and all the engineering factors. SubhanAllah, across the teams, please make du'a for everyone, all of the scholars you benefited from and all of those that you couldn't see. Please make du'a for everyone on the Yaqeen team that was a part of this Ramadan experience for you. Ask Allah to bless all of them, all of us and our families with the night and we pray the same for you and inshaAllah ta'ala, Shaykh Yasir, Shaykh Abdullah, I'll see you on the ping pong table and we're gonna have some news for everybody else on ping pong. We gotta get it done. Shaykh Yasir, I'm sorry, we gotta do this before 8. Bismillah, I'm ready for you. I'm gonna roll my sleeves up from now inshaAllah. MashaAllah. JazakumAllah Khairan MashaAllah. As-Salaamu Alaykum everyone. InshaAllah ta'ala till next time.
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