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بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ. الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى أَشْرَفِ الأَنْبِيَاءِ وَالمُرْسَلِينَ، نَبِيِّنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا كَثِيرًا، أَمَّا بَعْدُ.
My brothers and sisters, Rasulullahﷺ had a beautiful habit. He would say to Sayyidina Bilal, R.A., “Arihna ya Bilal.” He would say, “Give us relief, ya Bilal.” Means, call the adhan for us to pray.
We live in an upside down world. And the first and most important thing to do—and the first and most important sign of good sense—is to understand that. Is to understand that we live in a world which is upside down. It’s a culture of opposites: open means shut, shut means open. The Prophet mentioned this feature specifically in connection with the Dajjal. He said that the Dajjal will show one side of the world which will be beautiful. It will have gardens and rivers and all kinds of beautiful things. But Rasool Allah said that will be Jahannam; that will be the hellfire. Fire. And on the other side, he will show you the fire. And he said that will be Jannah. Upside down world, opposites. What seems to be good is actually evil. What seems to be evil or difficult or painful is actually good. So the good, the sign of intelligence, is to understand this. Don’t get fooled by this.
So the houses of Allah, the masajid, and Salah in it—this is a place of peace, a place of tranquility, a place of sukoon. Because we know, Rasulullahﷺ said that when people gather for the zikr of Allah, and the most, the highest form of the zikr of Allah, absolutely the highest, is the Fard Salah in Jama’at. The position of the Fard Salah in Jama’at is even higher than making tawaf of the Ka’bah. And this is not my imagination. What happens when the adhan is called? Does Tawaf stop or not? So what does it tell you? Which is more important? If Tawaf was more important, Tawaf would continue. People would say, “You pray, we do Attawaf.” No! When the Adhaan is called, Tawaf closes. So this Fard Salah, which we think is nothing…
Many times people say, “Nothing happens in the masjid.” What does that mean? Has the Fard Salah stopped? No, no, to padhte hain namaz. Upside down world. Something should happen in the masjid means there should be some tamasha. Some sheikh is called, somebody is making one bayan or some activity is happening and so on. The Masjid is not a club. It’s not a club. You’re not gathering here to have fun and you know, hang out with my friends. No. The Masjid—Masjid in the Arabic language, something with a meme, means a place of something: kitchen, place of cooking; Makhtab, place of the Kitab; Madkhal, place where you enter; Masjid, place for Sajda. Place for Sajda.
So Rasool Allah said that—we know the hadith where he said that—when people gather for the sake of the zikr of Allah, then Allah causes Sakina to descend on them, causes Sukoon and tranquility to descend on them, and the Malaika surround them and the Malaika pile one on top of the other layer upon layer until they reach the first heaven. And they stay there as long as dhikr of Allahﷻ is going on in whichever form it takes. After Fard Salah, people are sitting in dhikr Quran, somebody is doing something else, maybe somebody is praying Nawafil—not after Salatul Fajr but normally, like this, some khatirah is happening, whatever the form—the Malaika remain there as witnesses until this continues. Then when this Majlis is over, the Malaika go to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. And they report name by name.
As I am speaking to you, I know the names of some of you and I don’t know the names of our new brothers who I have seen for the first time, but that is better. The Malaika know your names. Allah Ta’ala knows your names. They mention the people by name to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala. They say, “Allah so and so and so and so gathered for your dhikr.” And of course Allah Ta’ala knows. Allah knows before the Malaika tell him. In the hadith, when this mention happens, the Malaika told Allah and so forth, Allah asked them, “Who was there?” It doesn’t mean Allah does not know. This is because Allah wants the Malaika to be your and my witnesses on the Day of Judgement. So they go and report: so and so was there, so and so was there. And when the report is over, Allah said, “You bear witness that I have forgiven all of them.” Okay? You bear witness that I have forgiven all of them. And then the Malaika will say, “Ya Rabb, there was one man who was passing by; he was not part of the majlis, he didn’t come there, he didn’t sit there, he didn’t listen to anything. He was passing by, he just stopped to see what’s going on. What about him?” Allah says, “I forgive him also.”
These are all hidden things; we don’t see this. But a day will come when we will see this. So on the face of it, it looks like okay there are 20 people, 10 people, whatever sitting in the masjid, somebody is talking, reminding about Allah. So what? So what? So what you will know and I will know when we meet Allah. It’s not because of me, not because of you—this is the mercy and rahmah of Allah on this Ummat of Muhammad. Apparently small things, apparently ordinary things, apparently things which we don’t give much importance to—as I told you, upside down world—things which are critically important. We give no importance to this. This is critically important because it is the zikr of Allah. There is nothing higher than this. It is critically important because this will remain with us in our graves. This will rise with us when we rise before Allah. This will stand with us when we are on the Day of Judgement. This will be our witness and our protection when we meet Allah from His anger, from His ‘adhab. What is more important than that? For us, some sleep is more important; something is more important. Upside down world. That’s why he was looking at this world.
Alhamdulillah, Allah Ta’ala—even though we live in an upside down world, Allah has given us the lenses and the glasses to see this world right side up. And that is called Islam. Islam. And the world right side up is that whatever seems to be important in the world is unimportant. And what is discarded, what is not important is important. So when we come into the Masjid, when we are in a state of Salah, we are coming out of the turmoil. We are coming out of the trials and tribulations and difficulties and stress of this worldly life into a place of Sakina, into a place of Sukun, into a place of tranquility, into a place of the Nuzool of Malaika, into a place of the Dhikr of Allahﷻ—for Dhikr Allah, Allah is the Greatest. They are coming into a place to do something about which Allah says: إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْفَحْشَٰي وَالْمُنْكَرَ (Verily the Salah separates you from all Fahushaat and Munkarat), from all sins and from all actions or acts of rebellion. What is a sin and what is an act of rebellion? Something which if Allah does not forgive us will land us in Jahannam. We ask Allah for His forgiveness. So this Salah is taking us away from Jahannam.
You come here; you listen to the Adhan. The whole issue of coming to the Masjid is not coming last minute and you know one wahshat running here and there and I don’t have wudu and I have to make wudu and I run. La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah. Wake up 15 minutes earlier, man. Come before the adhan is called, listen to the adhan so all—all of this is part of ibadah. You make wudu at home. Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam didn’t say “come to the masjid and create a tamasha”; he said “make”—he said the person who makes wudu at home and then he goes to the masjid—specific ahadith. He didn’t say “go to the masjid then make wudu there.” No, “make wudu at home.” Don’t leave—you are going to the masjid, why are you going without wudhu? Make wudhu at home. Come to the Masjid. Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, the one who makes Udhv at home and goes to the Masjid, Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala gives him one Hassanah for every step he takes. And he forgives one sin for every step he takes. And he raises him one Daraja in Jannah for every step he takes. One hasana means before Allahﷻ, how many rewards? Ten rewards. One is to ten. Allah is giving one hasana. When the reward time comes, how many have you got? Ten.
And you say, “I’m coming from a long distance.” The Sahaba deliberately used to live far from the masjid. They did not come close to the masjid because they said, “We want to take that many steps.” If I live next to the masjid, I’ve got only 10-15. Alhamdulillah, this is also Barakah. So, if people are living close to the masjid, Alhamdulillah, very good, live close to the masjid. But if you are living far from the masjid, this is again Barakah. One step—you say, “I came on my motorcycle or I came in the car.” My interpretation is: every time your wheel turns, it is one step. So don’t buy a big car; buy a small car with a small wheel. So there is more, more revolution.
The reason I am saying this is that when you remember these things, then this doesn’t seem like a burden. Abba, itna door kaun jaana? Are, itne door mein to barakat hai. And think about this, you know—I live half the time in America. In the winter, may Allah bless those people, we have people who come from 20 minutes, 30 minutes away, in the snow, in sleet, in ice for Salatul Fajr. They come and they come early. I said last minute—no, they come early for Salatul Fajr. I mean, they have got every excuse in the world to pray at home. If they pray at home, there is no sin on them because we know what the conditions are. But they go. You ask them, “Why do you go for Salat?” “If I have work, won’t I go?” If I am working on a shift system and my shift begins at 6 o’clock or 5, what will I do? Sardi ho ya garmi, then you go. Go. People who understand the reality. Say, “I’m getting reward for every time the wheel of the car turns; I’m getting reward for every step I’m taking.” This is the Baraka of—again, upside down world—you are not getting a reward for every step you take to go and earn a living.
You’re going to earn a living. I sometimes ask my sisters—many of them—we’ve got a problem with the husband, my husband around my husband—and tells me “do this, do that.” He said, “Do you go to work, sister?” Yes, I go to work. Where do you work? I work in whatever, Novartis or GE, General Electric or Microsoft or whatever. He said, “Okay, so who’s your boss, man or woman?” Her boss is a man. So what do you do when your boss tells you, “I want this report by this time?” You shut your mouth and you give the report. You don’t do any drama there. But when your husband tells you, “you got a problem,” that man is dedicating his entire life for your welfare. How much stress, stress, how much concern, how much anxiety—and they should not have all this anxiety because Allah is the Razak of the man and his wife—but I am saying, I mean I am a man. How much of anxiety men have about families and about their children and about their wives and this and that. Your boss doesn’t have any anxiety about you, believe me. Zero anxiety. The day you stop performing, you’re out on the street next minute. You will take orders from there; you won’t take. The point I’m making here is that that is the dunya. The dunya is where some strange man will give you orders. The dunya is where you have to deal with organization politics. The dunya is where you have all kinds of stresses. The dunya is a place of stress. The dunya is a place of fear, of anxiety.
When you leave that and you come to the masjid, you are coming to a place of sakinah, of tranquility. Come before—when you listen to the adhan. Rasulullahﷺ said, the one who listens to the adhan—listen to this carefully—five benefits. The one who listens to the adhan and repeats the words of the Mu’azzin after he says them. So if Muharram said “Allahu Akbar,” Allahu Akbar, you say “Allahu Akbar” in low voice. Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, and so on. When he comes to Hayal al-Salah, you say “Hayal al-Salah, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.” He’s Hayal al-Falah—you say “Hayal al-Falah, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.” Because he’s saying “come to Salah, come to success.” Why do you say “la hawla”? Because he’s saying “Hayal al-Salah,” but I cannot do unless Allah wills. So “la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.” When I’m coming here I’m making shukr to Allah; you are the one who brought me here to the masjid—I didn’t come—it is not my effort, it is not my tawfiq—I didn’t give tawfiq to myself; you gave me the tawfiq to come to your house; you invited me to come to your house.
I call the CM and call him—he stands there for 8 hours in the US embassy—see me, US consulate—”me when you get your appointment for your visa.” I have seen there were times when they didn’t use to give appointments. So you had to go. I am not exaggerating. I have seen people literally sleeping on the footpath. Long line. People sleeping on the footpath. They go the previous night so they can get in, just to get a visa. Allah Ta’ala izzat se bulata hai, to nahi aate.
So, Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, repeat the words of the Adhan after the Mu’azzin. When he finishes, then send Salat and Salam on Rasulullahﷺ. First, Duruud. And after the Duruud, then the Dua of Adhan: “Allahumma Rabba hadhihi-d-da’wati-t-tammah, wa-s-Salati-l-qa’imah, ati Muhammadan al-wasilata wa-l-fadilah, wab’athu maqaman mahmudan alladhi wa’adtah.” The Dua of the Adhan. And after you finish the Dua of the Adhan, you recite the Kalima: “Ashadu an la ilaha illallah wahdahu la sharika lahu wa ashadu anna Muhammadan abduhu wa rasuluh.” And then you say, “Raditu billahi Rabbah wa bi Islami dina” and Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and his Messenger. I seek refuge with Allah, my Lord, and in the religion of Islam, and with Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and his Prophet. I seek refuge with Allah, my Lord, and in the religion of Islam, and with Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and his Messenger and his Prophet. So how many things? Repeat the words of the Mu’azzin after the Adhan and say “La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah” at “Hayya ‘ala al-Salah” and “Hayya ‘ala al-Falah”; and after that, Durood on Rasulullahﷺ—peace and blessings be upon him—then after that the Dua of Adhan, then the Shahada, and then Radhitu Billahi Rabbah, Wa bi Islami Deena, Wa bi Muhammadin Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, Rasulan wa Nabiya. So five things. And Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said, after this, whatever Dua you make, Allah will accept. InshaAllah. Right?
Sukun. So do this: come peacefully. You are coming to the house of Allahﷻ, the place of the Nuzul of Malaika. What is the hurry? What is the hurry to run when you want to leave and run from here? You are running into what you are running into—the fire. You are running into stress. You are running into all kinds of turmoil. You are running into this dunya which is a place of mashakka—a place of effort and trouble.
Then you come in and you pray two rakats of Tahiyyatul Masjid. And then you pray the sunnah of whichever Salah it is. And then you wait for the Imam to come on the Musalla. Rasool Allah said all the time that is spent waiting for the Salah and the time you spend after the Salah—as long as you don’t talk about the Dunya—all of this is counted as Salah, as Namaz. So if you come for Salatul Fajr and you sit here till Duha, that whole time it is counted as if you were praying. Only condition is don’t talk about the Dunya. You can talk about Allahﷻ, you can talk, you can read Quran—whatever you do, don’t talk about your stuff.
And that is the reason why when the Iqamat is called, then the Imam will come; the Imam will call. He does. In Salatul Fajr, after you finish the Fajr, you sit in zikr until Ishraq. 20 minutes after sun has risen, Nabi said, Allah will give you the reward of one Hajj and one Umrah. Again, condition: Sit in zikr, don’t talk about the dunya. That is why once the fard sala starts, no other sala is valid. So, come early for fajr sala. Pray sunnah at the time of sunnah. If you could not do that, join the fard. If the namaz is started, join the fard. After the fard, pray the sunnah. If you are praying sunnah while the Fard is going on, your sunnah is not valid, your salah is not valid. You have not prayed your sunnah.
So, I ask Allah to help us to understand that we live in an upside down world and to stop living in an upside down world, to get ourselves right side up by looking at the world through the lens of Islam and to benefit from all the rewards that Allah has given us which are so easy and almost free—a little bit of effort.
Allahumma salli wa sallim.