February 20, 2025 • 46 mins
Reflections from The Risale-Nur a Qur'an commentary by Bediüzzaman Said Nursi
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This is the last part of a reflection that we had
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started a while back.
It was a reflection on one ofAllah's names, Al-Rahman, which
we know every chapter in theQuran begins with Allah's name,
the most merciful.
And Al-Rahman typically, as manyscholars have explained, is
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related to this dunya, that inthis world, Allah makes his
unconditional love mercy andcompassion accessible to
everyone which means that nobodyis left out of that mercy in
this world everyone has the sameaccess the same entrance the
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same connection to allah andallah showers everyone with that
same mercy now in order to bearwitness to that mercy and to
that compassion in order to bealways connected to allah's
mercy, rahmah, there is oneformula that Allah invites us to
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constantly recite and be mindfulof throughout our daily lives.
And that is what we know is thebasmala.
So beginning everything, everyaction, every thought, every day
in the name of Allah, Bismillahar-Rahman ar-Rahim.
And this is the core.
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that we need to cultivate, thatwe approach everything always
with a sense of mercy, alwayswith a sense of rahmah, that we
are aware that in our dealingsand interactions, that we try to
be a vessel of Allah's mercy,that we try to increase our
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connection to Allah.
and come closer to His mercy,but also that we reflect His
mercy in all of our conduct andour interactions with people.
And that means to meet peoplewith unconditional compassion.
We are now about to enter thesacred month of Ramadan, which
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is the holy month of mercy.
It's the month of rahmah, it'sthe month of mercy.
And I've been reflecting a lotthese days, what does this mean
for us, Ramadan this year, inthis climate, in this moment, in
this global atmosphere?
And I'm thinking a lot aboutemotional starvation, mental
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starvation, emotional hunger,and how we can connect, how we
can bring more mercy When we areaddressing emotional starvation,
mental starvation, I want totalk about this a little bit in
this hour.
It's very important that we feedthe poor, that we make sure the
needs of our stomachs and ourphysical needs are met.
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And there are certainly so manypeople around the world who are
struggling.
facing poverty and starvationand physical starvation, and why
that's important to addressthose needs and be charitable
and increase our acts of mercyand rahmah in this month,
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because like I said, Ramadancalls us to be even more mindful
of rahmah.
But how do we respond to whatwe're now collectively
witnessing?
The mental struggles around theworld, the sense of despair and
hopelessness, the sense ofdarkness, the thirst and hunger
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for spirituality, for purpose,for meaning, for support, for
hope.
I mean, just in my immediatecircle and living in the United
States, we hear so much aboutthe loneliness epidemic.
We hear about people mentallystruggling.
And this is not just simplyoutside the Muslim community.
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This is a global, a collectivespiritual disease where we see
just recently I visited a familywhere one Muslim brother said to
me, So many Muslim friends,brothers, sisters in his own
circle are struggling right nowmentally because their faith is
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struggling in this moment wherethey are exposed to so much
suffering and so much death andall the struggles and hardships
around the world.
What is it then what we need toprovide if all around us,
people, many of us,alhamdulillah, their physical
needs are met, the tummies arefull, but the hearts, the minds
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are hungry, they need nurturing,they need sustenance, spiritual
sustenance, spiritual strength,spiritual support, mental
support, emotional support.
And the genius of this work ofthe Risale-i Nur and the
practice and methodology of theRisale-i-Noor is to cultivate
these intimate, sacred and holyspaces where people can come
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together and build resilientcommunity, where they can come
together weekly, consistently,regularly to check in with each
other, to talk about life, totalk about their struggles, to
share and process their grief,their despair, their
hopelessness, and then to havepeople, sisters, brothers around
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them, who provide that emotionalcare, that emotional sustenance,
that spiritual sustenance, andrespond to the mental and
emotional starvation that isaround us.
And let's be clear, it'sdefinitely a major calamity if
we are facing poverty andhunger, and that's a reality for
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many.
But at the same time, youprovide somebody food and they
will be okay daily.
Their stomachs are fed, theirbody's needs are met.
But if somebody's heart, ifsomebody's spirit is suffering
and somebody's Iman is so shakenand so weak and so much in
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desperation, then he is about tolose his eternal home.
His eternal future, Hiseverlasting future, His ultimate
shelter, His ultimate home.
So we need to call it, what isit that the Prophet saw, Sam,
who was an embodiment of mercy?
His concern was to respond tofeeding the emotional and
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spiritual needs of of hiscommunity, of his followers.
So what can I do in this momentas I'm entering the months of
Ramadan, the months of mercy, tobe a vessel of mercy and rahmah
and respond to the emotional andmental starvation?
Can I open my home up to two,three people and say, come, have
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a cup of tea with me, share yoursorrow, share your grief, share
your struggles?
and hear them out, listen tothem, be their companion, be
their sister, be their brother.
Weeks go by, people don't seeeach other.
This is not the childhood wewere growing up.
We used to check in on eachother.
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People would play, haveunstructured time, spontaneously
check in each other.
Now, this is the challenge thatwe are all facing.
in building intentionalcommunity, strong, spiritual,
resilient communities who takecare of each other, who respond
to each other's emotional,mental needs, spiritual support,
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so that, God forbid, theireternal home is not lost.
Because once you lose youreternal future, your ultimate
home, your everlasting home,your akhira, then that's the
utter loss.
That needs to be our concernmore than providing shelter and
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food and clothing in the world.
Yes, those are important.
But I invite myself and everyoneto think about what it means
that now all these studiescoming out where people are
facing deep mental, spiritualstruggles, that we are all
called to to have responsibilitylike the Prophet Sallallahu
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Alaihi Wasallam, that sacredresponsibility to bring more
rahmah and mercy and hope andlight and purpose into the
world.
And we can only do that.
It starts with us daily openingour hearts.
I shared that in the group.
For Allah to open your heart, toopen your home, and to open your
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pocket and share what you can.
Yes, financially, this is themonth, this is the month, this
is the moment where we aretrained and disciplined and
then, inshallah, carry it intothe future.
So those are the things that I'mthinking in terms of rahmah,
what is the ultimate mercy,compassion that you can give to
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another person, feeding themspiritually, feeding them,
nurturing them, supporting themspiritually.
because this is what Allah does.
He doesn't just address ourphysical needs.
So if we in Ramadan simply focuson addressing physical needs,
material needs, that is not aholistic care.
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So we need to make sure that wenurture ourselves spiritually.
That's a priority because that'sthe core of everything.
If the heart is sound,everything else falls into
place.
We can overcome hardship.
We can overcome suffering.
We are not crushed by the eventsin the world.
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But sadly, that is the case thatI'm seeing.
A lot of people are goingthrough life and hardships
alone.
They are not willing or they arescared to be vulnerable to be
shared or they don't have timeto meet people during the week
to check in with each other butthat's the wonderful thing about
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sacred community sacredsisterhood and brotherhood and
to turn my home into a place ofmercy and remembrance and
learning and support that peoplecan be nurtured is so critical
in this moment because this issomething that we all need to
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keep in mind as we are enteringthe months of Ramadan.
What is it that the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
ultimately brought to us?
It's the spiritual sustenance.
We feel so alive by engagingwith the Quranic message.
It gives us purpose.
It gives us direction.
It allows us to discern rightfrom wrong.
It gives us a holy GPSorientation in the world, how to
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read the events in the life,what to make of suffering and
death and illness.
And especially seeing so manyyoung people around me being in
physical pain, chronic pain,going through some fatal
illnesses like cancer, that'seven more critical to help them
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to cultivate a sacred outlookand script To flip the script,
thinking that they are not aproductive Muslim because they
cannot fast in the months ofRamadan, please, everybody who
hears me out right now, if youare thinking that you're not a
good Muslim or a good person offaith because you cannot
physically fast in the months ofRamadan, please let go of that
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notion.
There's nothing in the Islamictradition, nothing in our sacred
resources that suggests thatthat you are less of a Muslim,
less productive if you are notparticipating in the fast of
Ramadan just because you havesome physical illness or
physical hardship and a medicalexpert doctor has said you
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cannot fast.
I hear that in this moment.
Please let go of that.
That is not a healthy way toapproach Ramadan because the
sense of productivity This ideaof success, what it looks like
to be a successful Muslim, aproductive Muslim, those are not
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acts of mercy to yourself.
This is harmful.
And Allah prohibits us to harmourselves because these are not
acts of mercy.
We have to show compassion toourselves first to accept and
surrender and find peace.
and embrace the notion if Allahhas placed us into a moment of
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physical illness or physicalsickness, and we cannot
participate fully in the fast ofRamadan, that doesn't mean that
we are less valuable or worthy,or somehow we have no value.
Those are very worldly,egotistic understandings of
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Islam.
So I've been talking about thisa little bit, reflecting because
this idea of how a certainMuslim has to look like.
They have to be able-bodied andfully participate physically in
charge.
Those are false notions.
We don't know where the qualityof our worship lies in Ramadan
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and beyond.
Maybe that illness or thatphysical hardship that prevents
you participating in the fast ofRamadan, maybe that certainly is
an act of rahmah.
But it's this egocentricunderstanding of Islam, how I
need to look and participate asa Muslim, our own vision of what
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a productive Muslim looks like.
And if we fail, if we are notthat, then we feel like a
failure.
And that is putting pressure onourselves, unnecessary harm and
zulm.
It's oppression to our soulsbecause Allah loves and his
compassion embraces the ones whoare also going through physical
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suffering, through some severeillnesses.
I say that because I see in myown circle, brothers, sisters
struggling with very severediseases and the idea that they
cannot participate in the monthsof Ramadan, they are putting
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that on themselves, this ideathat they feel like a failure or
missing out.
Of course, it's a beautifulblessing to fast in the months
of Ramadan.
It's an amazing act of Ihsanthat we can do so, and we should
try our best.
But if we cannot do that, ifAllah placed us in a certain
condition, We are leaning intothat.
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We are accepting and we aresurrendering while still seeking
treatment, of course, medicaltreatment and all of that.
But if we reject the illness, ifwe see it as an enemy, if we see
it alien, then we actuallyperpetuate and exacerbate the
pain and we become victims.
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And to understand that we haveagency and that we are valuable
despite that, Certain physicalchallenge is really important in
this moment.
So please convey this message.
There's nothing in Islam thattells us that Allah says only if
you are physically able inparticipating, you are a better
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Muslim.
There's no such thing.
This is something that we createin our own minds.
So we need to flip the script.
And I say that in relation toRahmah, because Allah's Rahmah
is all encompassing.
It's so vast, it's so expansivethat it also includes illness.
Illness is not outside the foldof Allah's rahmah.
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We don't know what impactfultransformations are happening
when somebody is bedridden.
You know, the quality of theirworship, the quality of their
patience, the quality of theiracceptance, the quality of their
gratitude, of their trust, oftheir resilience.
There are important internaltransformations and elevations
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happening, we are not alwaysoften aware.
And of course, as Muslims, we donot ask to suffer or we do not
ask or desire illness.
But when Allah has decreed it tous, when it's our destiny to go
through some painful chapter,then we must be accepting of
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that.
And that, inshallah, makes thenthe journey easier.
So let me read a little bit hereand then hopefully wrap it up.
O man, O human being, if you aretruly a human being, say, in the
name of God, the merciful, thecompassionate, find that
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intercessor.
For sure it is clearly,self-evidently divine mercy,
which without forgetting orconfusing any of them, raises,
nurtures and administers theinnumerable plant and animal
species on the earth atprecisely the right time and
with perfect order, wisdom andbeneficence, generosity and
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stamps the seal of divineoneness on the face of the globe
of the earth.
The existence of divine mercy isas certain as the existence of
the beings on the face of theearth.
So do the beings offer evidencesof its reality to their own
number.
So basically everything aroundus expresses or displays Allah's
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vast and expansive mercy.
I mean, you see it right nowwhen I look out my window and
the snowflakes coming down, thissense of peace and gentleness
and kindness.
You just feel it.
It's an experiential knowing.
You see it in the birds and howAllah protects them in this
harsh season.
They are not freezing.
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They are protected.
Allah closes them.
dresses them with specialfeathers, gives them the
knowledge to navigate the harshweathers.
We were just the other daywalking, doing a nature walk,
and we had a bird specialist, asister in our group.
And I asked her, how do thebirds even know how to navigate
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and how to orient themselves inthis migration season?
How do they find the way?
I'm unable these days to...
to find a street without the GPSsystem.
And she said, scientists stilldon't know.
The birds, they always findtheir way.
They are never lost.
They never get lost.
For me, this is a display ofAllah's mercy, of His rahmah.
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He sends these birds with aninborn GPS system.
They find their way.
They are never lost.
Allah is Al-Hadi, the guide.
He gives them the orientation.
They find their way, they knowhow to go into the warmer
regions, and then they comeback.
SubhanAllah, isn't that adisplay of Allah's mercy?
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Who else?
I mean, how do they know how toorient themselves, how to find
their way, if it's not Allah whohas equipped them, endowed them,
sent them ready into the world?
Not one bird is neglected.
Not one little creature isneglected, forgotten, abandoned.
So how come that we sometimesthink that in our, in this
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journey of life, in our lows andhighs, that we are somehow
forgotten or abandoned, or it'sjust us who's going through some
difficult time?
No, that's not the case.
See how Allah guides them inthis harsh season, in this cold
season.
If it would be me outside, Iwould be frozen.
But there I look at the cardinalon the tree and subhanAllah he
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says, see how Allah protects mein his divine mercy.
I'm not cold, I'm not shaken.
That's complete trust in hismercy, embracing his mercy,
seeing his mercy and cultivatingthe sacred outlook into the
creation and the world.
And then you take it backinwardly and you also feel that
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Allah is constantly surroundingyou with his rahmah.
Everything in this universe issent to us, made servant to us.
The Quran constantly tells usthat this world is prepared for
the human being.
The air, the wind is so clear.
You go out, you feel refreshed,you feel rejuvenated,
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re-energized.
The cleanliness, the purity, thehygiene, subhanAllah.
Isn't that divine mercy?
What else are we looking for?
If I'm here in this house for along period without that clean
air, without Allah's pure airthat he sends me out of his
divine mercy, I would cease tothrive.
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I would cease to live.
Yet constantly, every second,Allah cleanses, purifies,
provides us clean, fresh oxygen.
That is his whole encompassingmercy.
None of us goes into a store andbuys bottles of oxygen.
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Yet we see people strugglingbreathing.
So it's a basic nyama, basicsustenance, existential need
like clean air.
We are not even mindful of that.
Who does that?
I mean, we have to do it in ourlittle home every hour and then
to cleanse the air, purify theair, but you go outside, it's
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just there.
We just take it for granted.
And none of us saysalhamdulillah for that fresh air
that Allah, out of his mercy,creates every second for me so I
can breathe.
And it's accessible to everyone.
Nobody buys it.
Nobody has to pay for it.
Nobody is excluded.
Nobody is otherized.
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The non-believer and thebeliever, everybody is enjoying
the same rahmah.
And Allah wants us to displaythat same rahmat to each other.
It's not my job, my duty tojudge another person.
I don't know their context,their circumstances.
Leave judgment to Allah.
Your job, your duty, Zainab, isto meet everyone with that
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unconditional compassion thatAllah has called you to show, to
display.
And that means to defer ultimatejudgment to him.
We don't know people'scircumstances.
We don't know people's socialupbringings, their struggles,
their contexts, theirinfluences.
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So leaving that and meetingpeople in that neutral,
compassionate space, regardlessof their convictions and
beliefs.
Yes, I do have my principles andbeliefs.
I do not compromise or negotiatethem.
But that's this ultimatefundamental principle in guiding
human interaction, is to meetpeople with a sense of
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compassion.
And that's what the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
showed us, as this ultimatemercy to the worlds, to meet
always people with a sense ofcompassion and granting them
forgiveness.
Seeing that they've been also,that actually when they do
something harmful, or followsome misguided idea that they
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are harming themselves, not meor you.
And to see that and giveeverybody that kind of
compassionate behavior and meetpeople with a sense of embrace
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to make them feel safe And wesee that in the life of the
Prophet Sallallahu AlaihiWasallam.
And in this month again, as weare welcoming the months of
Ramadan, another thing thatpeople are starving for is
forgiveness.
Let's try to work towardsforgiveness.
Because one of Allah's name isAl-Ghaffar, Al-Afu, Al-Tawwab.
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And this is a month to becleansed, to be purified.
to let go of grudges.
And this is not something thathappens overnight, but at least
have the Nia in our hearts towork towards that.
In this month, I want to arriveat a sound heart, at a peaceful
heart, return to my Lord inpeace.
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I will let go of grudges.
I will let go of negative anddestructive feelings.
You hear so many stories aboutpeople not talking to each other
because of something they said20 years ago.
Forgiveness is not aboutallowing the harm to continue.
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It's about coming closer toAllah.
Our duty as Muslims is to comecloser to Allah, our aim, and
help others to come closer toAllah.
That's why the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
expressed forgiveness, even tothe most horrific crimes.
And he was human.
I mean, we know that even whenthe companion Vahshi, may Allah
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be pleased with him, came to himand said he seeks forgiveness
for the murder of his beloveduncle Hamza, the Prophet granted
it to him.
But he said, please don't appearagain in my sight because I'm
afraid the negative feelingsmight come up again.
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So it doesn't mean when weforgive in our heart or let go
of certain things that we caneasily forget the past.
That just bubbles up.
It's just what makes us human.
We are reminded of that painfulaction or moment.
But when we are working towardsforgiveness, towards maghfirah,
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we are coming closer to Allahand we are allowing the person
also to come closer to Allah.
I'm always terrified by thethought thinking, somebody on
judgment day, somebody I'm stillstruggling with forgiveness.
He's there standing in the heatand terrifying moment on
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judgment day.
And because of me, he's waiting.
Because of me, because Icouldn't give him forgiveness.
And I'm the obstacle.
I mean, that terrifies me, thatthought, thinking, I don't want
anybody to be in that difficultyand hardship on Judgment Day.
I don't want anybody to, I don'twant to be in between that
person and Allah.
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Allah wanted to forgive thatperson, but it's still the
person, you know, theinterrelationship, the human
relationship that needs to besolved out.
And if people don't reconcile orgrant each other that
forgiveness, that makes it somuch harder for us on that
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terrifying day, that judgmentday where we all just, we don't
want anybody to have more extraburden and hardship.
So trying to work towardsforgiveness in this month of
Rachman, we all have things thatwe carry with us in our hearts.
Forgiveness is not an easy thingto do, but we know Allah loves
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it.
The person might not be worthit, but Allah is worth it.
There are a lot of people whoare difficult to love, granted.
And when you hear people'sstories, you say, yes, sister,
brother, you're absolutelyright.
He's not deserving of yourforgiveness, but Allah is
deserving.
Allah is deserving.
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So that's why, hopefully, I praythat we each can work towards
forgiveness, towards liberationof the heart, that true purpose.
Otherwise, we become slaves ofour past.
We constantly replay the painfulpast, the painful harm, the
painful moments.
Oh, this person did this 20years ago.
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They said this 20 years ago.
They've done this.
They hurt me.
They harm me.
And to be clear, it doesn't meanto allow the harm to continue.
Allah did not create us soothers can oppress us.
We have to create boundaries asan act of rahmah towards
ourself.
We have to create that boundaryand say no.
But at the same time, we canalso work towards forgiveness.
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Saying this person, that's whatI love in the Risale-i Nurah
section on uhuwa, sisterhood andbrotherhood, teaching us to
minimize some of the evilbecause there's shaitan, There's
the role and the temptations ofthe devil and Satan.
So we all fall into misguidedbehavior or wrongdoing because
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of Shaitan's temptations orwhispering.
We all have that reality.
Then there's also the innerreality of our nafs, of our
lower egos, the inner struggle,the constant temptations and the
struggle to be a better person.
It's not easy.
And then that last portion, isour portion or the person's
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portion.
So what's beautiful here to tryto minimize things a little bit.
So there is the socialdeterminism part.
There is the part where we wereall born into certain
circumstances.
We learned certain wrongbehaviors, adopted certain
patterns for maybe dysfunctionalfamilies and marriages and being
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raised in a certain way.
That's that.
And then we struggle to unlearnand relearn healthy behaviors.
Then there's our nafs and thenthere's also shaitan.
And when you minimize andminimize, minimize, maybe we can
arrive to compassion towardsthat other person and say, he
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had a difficult, you know, therewas a difficult context.
He didn't have anybody to guidehim, to show him, to teach him,
to mentor him.
There's so many factors in aperson's wrongdoing, in our
wrongdoing.
And to grant ourselvesforgiveness, also the things we
didn't know in the past.
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You did the things that you knewat that time and you acted upon
it and to forgive yourself thatyou didn't know any better then.
But now if you've evolved,you've changed.
And you hug that young girl oryoung person and you say, it's
okay.
It's okay.
We can make mistakes, right?
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So to arrive at that kind ofcompassionate place, showing
forgiveness to ourselves, and Iwant Allah to show me
forgiveness.
So maybe by expressingforgiveness to others, that also
helps to come closer to Allah'sname, Al-Ghaffar.
That's the ultimate goal.
And another expression of Rahmahis forgiveness.
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So, urging everyone, myself, inthis month of Ramadan to
reconcile, to work towardsforgiveness, to work towards
restoration, to bring heartstogether, and inshallah come out
with a sound heart, a heart thatthen goes back, returns to Allah
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in peace, in peace.
in serenity, in soundness,saying, alhamdulillah, I have a
clean slate.
I don't want anybody, I don'twant to be at somebody's
graveyard and have regrets,remorses, I should have, I could
have.
And we don't want to be, deathis a powerful reminder.
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And alhamdulillah, in my ownlife, as I'm thinking about
this, showing each otherforgiveness, It was such a
beautiful moment recently whensomebody that I had really
difficulty, all of a suddensaid, please forgive me.
I didn't know any better.
Nobody showed me.
Nobody guided me.
I acted upon a lot ofmisinformation.
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And just asking for forgivenesswas such a bold, courageous,
brave act.
I was in awe.
And I shared that and I said, itwas such a beautiful moment that
somebody like this, so stern andstrong, but as we age also, we
look at the arc of our life andwe see it with more nuance, more
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complexity.
When we are younger, we thinkblack and white, but when you
are aging, that's the beautifulthing about aging, I guess, is
you think with more compassionabout others and what happened
in your life.
So that's also something that isrelated to mercy, to rahmah.
Allah wants us To forgiveourselves, to forgive others,
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and this is not a one-dayprocess, but at least to have
the intention to at least worktowards that and to be gentle
and kind in that process and notto think that this has to be
happening overnight.
Because this is what Allah wantsand He is deserving of that.
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Just as there is a seal of mercyand stamp of divine oneness on
the face of the earth, so on theface of man's nature is a stamp
of divine mercy that is notinferior to the stamp of
compassion and vast stamp ofmercy on the face of the
universe.
Simply man has so comprehensivea nature, he is as though the
point of focus of a thousand andone divine names.
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And again here, Allah shows hismercy to everyone, all people.
In this world, the rahmah isaccessible to all, to those with
wrongdoing, with misbehavior,with false conduct.
So we can emulate that.
We can imitate that mercy.
We should expand in that andalways try to always err on the
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side of mercy and compassion.
And we will never go wrong inthat regard because this is the
divine quality of Allah in thisworld.
And he wants us to expand, toexpand in that mercy vast like
the universe.
Don't narrow it to one place,one country, one territory.
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No hate, no exclusion, nodiscrimination, no racism, no
aggressive, excessivenationalism.
Those are creating...
basically constructing thesebarriers and divisions and walls
between human beings.
It's one human family and tryingto bring everybody together
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under the umbrella of mercy.
And while these differences areunique and they are created by
Allah's will, they are not whatare the foundation for
relationships.
Relationship is compassion.
That's the best in the humanbeing, the quality.
People will always remember howwe made them feel.
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It's not the knowledge or thelecturing, but how we made them
feel, that compassionate,caring, affectionate presence.
And I see that all the time whensomebody dies, and people talk
about how accessible they were,how kind they were, generous
they were, compassionate theywere, nonjudgmental.
(37:21):
Those are all acts of mercy, andwe see that displayed by Allah.
Everybody has access to cleanwater, clean air, the endless
blessings, the food.
It is only the human being whodenies that to one another, who
excludes, who denies.
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who discriminates and oppresses,who takes away, who's greedy.
And so our goal is to expandthat mercy, vast and vast, and
to meet everyone with that senseof compassion.
O man, O human being, is it atall possible that the one who
gives you this face and placessuch a stamp of mercy and seal
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of oneness on it would leave youto your own devices, attach no
importance to you, pay noattention to your actions, make
the whole universe which isturned towards you futile and
pointless, and make the tree ofcreation rotten and
insignificant with decayedfruit?
Would he cause his mercy to bedenied, although it is as?
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Although it is as obvious as thesun, as well as his wisdom,
which is as clear as daylight,and neither of which can in any
way be doubted, nor are in anyway deficient, God forbid.
O men, understand that there isa way to ascend to the throne of
divine mercy, and that is,Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.
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should like really mindfully saythese holy words, in the name of
Allah, the merciful, thecompassionate.
I begin every act, everyinteraction, every thought,
every encounter with a humanbeing with Ar-Rahman.
I'm going to meet this personwith Ar-Rahman.
How does Allah want me to meetthis person, to interact with
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this person, to be at myworkplace, at school, in my
family, In all my interactions,how does Ar-Rahman come to life?
Or am I disrespecting Allah'sAr-Rahman?
Am I showing harshness?
Am I showing too much judgment?
Am I weedy?
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Am I limiting my compassion?
So these are the questions thatactually the basmala, that's why
it is so center and core to allwhat we are doing.
It is basically a prayer, astarting point.
In my interactions, it's notabout trying to be just, but the
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mercy, to really anchor myselfin mercy and try to show that in
the best way I can.
If you want to understand theimportance of this ascent, Look
at the beginning of the 114surahs, the chapters of the
Quran of miraculous exposition,and at the beginnings of all
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estimable books, and at thestart of all good works.
So if you want something to begood, we start in the name of
Allah.
And even if things do not playout the way we want, which is
another expression ormanifestation of egotism, like I
explained earlier, That still isstill, everything still is
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wrapped in mercy.
So you might start off your daywith the basmala, but then you
go on the route or you enteredthe car and you have caught, an
accident happened.
Does that mean that rahmah isnot at play?
No.
Allah's name, ar-Rahman, isstill there.
Not maybe on the surface.
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Yes, it's painful, it's chaotic,It's destructive, but underneath
all of it, the rahmah is stillworking its way through.
It's not always evident in thefirst sight, in the illness or
the pain or the suffering or thehardship, but the rahmah is
there.
And it's for us to uncover thedeeper layers of it.
(41:30):
So yes, when I'm looking at mytable with the blessings of
fruit, that is rahmah evident.
But sometimes in the toughmoments of our lives, like I
said, accidents, hardships,disasters, illness, loss, death,
you might think, where's therahmah?
(41:51):
Like many of these Muslimbrothers, sisters might be
struggling.
Where's the rahmah?
Where's Allah's mercy?
If there's a merciful Lord, Godor creator, why does he allow
for this?
Hasha, as if Allah is saying,out of touch with his creation.
Can anybody who is immersed inthe book of creation ever claim
that?
No, but that's the ultimatetest.
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That's the ultimate invitation.
Are you able to see my mercybehind the veil, behind the veil
of confusion and chaos?
So, and that is where then weare, Waste was the ultimate,
where we learned trust andtawakkul and patience and
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resilience and persistence.
And we learned the deepermeanings of Allah's name,
Al-Hakim.
What's the meaning here?
What's the purpose?
How do I bring life and beautyin this event?
It's up to us.
We can decide.
There are many people we've seenin the pandemic or in other
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global events.
Many people who turn to Allahand many people who sadly reject
Allah.
One event, but multipledifferent responses.
So many people, even now withall the sufferings around the
world, many people run closer toAllah and many people reject
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Him.
That's the test, that's thefilter, but we have the choice.
We are deciding which way andwhat we see, what we want to
see.
But we have the Quranic guide.
We have the book of theuniverse.
We have the prophets, themessengers.
We have our holy GPS system.
We have our holy map making.
(43:49):
But ultimately, it's a humanchoice.
how we want to orient ourselvesin the world.
If we begin in the name ofAllah's mercy, we will always
see mercy.
It's how we see the world, howour inner outlook is.
The things are not the way theyare.
They are the way we see them.
That's very important.
(44:10):
So Allah says in many of thesesacred narrations, I am
according to the assumption ofmy servant.
If you think Allah is out thereto torture you, if I think that
Allah is out there to torture meor punish me or send me the
illness to torture me or neglectme, then this is how I will
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experience it.
But if I experience my illness,my aging, my struggles as a form
of elevation, as a form oftransformation, as a form of
positive change, then I willcome closer to Him.
I'll see all of this as acts ofmercy.
Allah, this was hard, but I'velearned so much through these
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tough times.
You've taught me a lot.
You've shaped me.
You've formed me.
We just read it.
Allah is shaping your face.
The wrinkles on my face, my faceis shaped by him, al-musawwir.
Why do I think that my characteris not shaped by him?
That my weaknesses and mystrengths, that Allah in His
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mercy wants to bring out mystrength and jewels and maybe
wants to minimize my flaws.
That's also acts of mercy.
So to finish up, a clear proofof the God-determined grandeur
of in the name of Allah is thatImam Shafi, may Allah be pleased
with him, one of the veryforemost Islamic scholars said,
(45:42):
in the name of Allah, themerciful, the compassionate is
only one verse, yet it wasrevealed 114 times in the Quran.
As-salamu alaykum warahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
music music
SPEAKER_00 (00:20):
This is the last part of a reflection that we had
(00:44):
started a while back.
It was a reflection on one ofAllah's names, Al-Rahman, which
we know every chapter in theQuran begins with Allah's name,
the most merciful.
And Al-Rahman typically, as manyscholars have explained, is
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related to this dunya, that inthis world, Allah makes his
unconditional love mercy andcompassion accessible to
everyone which means that nobodyis left out of that mercy in
this world everyone has the sameaccess the same entrance the
(01:26):
same connection to allah andallah showers everyone with that
same mercy now in order to bearwitness to that mercy and to
that compassion in order to bealways connected to allah's
mercy, rahmah, there is oneformula that Allah invites us to
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constantly recite and be mindfulof throughout our daily lives.
And that is what we know is thebasmala.
So beginning everything, everyaction, every thought, every day
in the name of Allah, Bismillahar-Rahman ar-Rahim.
And this is the core.
(02:12):
that we need to cultivate, thatwe approach everything always
with a sense of mercy, alwayswith a sense of rahmah, that we
are aware that in our dealingsand interactions, that we try to
be a vessel of Allah's mercy,that we try to increase our
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connection to Allah.
and come closer to His mercy,but also that we reflect His
mercy in all of our conduct andour interactions with people.
And that means to meet peoplewith unconditional compassion.
We are now about to enter thesacred month of Ramadan, which
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is the holy month of mercy.
It's the month of rahmah, it'sthe month of mercy.
And I've been reflecting a lotthese days, what does this mean
for us, Ramadan this year, inthis climate, in this moment, in
this global atmosphere?
And I'm thinking a lot aboutemotional starvation, mental
(03:15):
starvation, emotional hunger,and how we can connect, how we
can bring more mercy When we areaddressing emotional starvation,
mental starvation, I want totalk about this a little bit in
this hour.
It's very important that we feedthe poor, that we make sure the
needs of our stomachs and ourphysical needs are met.
(03:37):
And there are certainly so manypeople around the world who are
struggling.
facing poverty and starvationand physical starvation, and why
that's important to addressthose needs and be charitable
and increase our acts of mercyand rahmah in this month,
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because like I said, Ramadancalls us to be even more mindful
of rahmah.
But how do we respond to whatwe're now collectively
witnessing?
The mental struggles around theworld, the sense of despair and
hopelessness, the sense ofdarkness, the thirst and hunger
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for spirituality, for purpose,for meaning, for support, for
hope.
I mean, just in my immediatecircle and living in the United
States, we hear so much aboutthe loneliness epidemic.
We hear about people mentallystruggling.
And this is not just simplyoutside the Muslim community.
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This is a global, a collectivespiritual disease where we see
just recently I visited a familywhere one Muslim brother said to
me, So many Muslim friends,brothers, sisters in his own
circle are struggling right nowmentally because their faith is
(05:02):
struggling in this moment wherethey are exposed to so much
suffering and so much death andall the struggles and hardships
around the world.
What is it then what we need toprovide if all around us,
people, many of us,alhamdulillah, their physical
needs are met, the tummies arefull, but the hearts, the minds
(05:25):
are hungry, they need nurturing,they need sustenance, spiritual
sustenance, spiritual strength,spiritual support, mental
support, emotional support.
And the genius of this work ofthe Risale-i Nur and the
practice and methodology of theRisale-i-Noor is to cultivate
these intimate, sacred and holyspaces where people can come
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together and build resilientcommunity, where they can come
together weekly, consistently,regularly to check in with each
other, to talk about life, totalk about their struggles, to
share and process their grief,their despair, their
hopelessness, and then to havepeople, sisters, brothers around
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them, who provide that emotionalcare, that emotional sustenance,
that spiritual sustenance, andrespond to the mental and
emotional starvation that isaround us.
And let's be clear, it'sdefinitely a major calamity if
we are facing poverty andhunger, and that's a reality for
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many.
But at the same time, youprovide somebody food and they
will be okay daily.
Their stomachs are fed, theirbody's needs are met.
But if somebody's heart, ifsomebody's spirit is suffering
and somebody's Iman is so shakenand so weak and so much in
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desperation, then he is about tolose his eternal home.
His eternal future, Hiseverlasting future, His ultimate
shelter, His ultimate home.
So we need to call it, what isit that the Prophet saw, Sam,
who was an embodiment of mercy?
His concern was to respond tofeeding the emotional and
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spiritual needs of of hiscommunity, of his followers.
So what can I do in this momentas I'm entering the months of
Ramadan, the months of mercy, tobe a vessel of mercy and rahmah
and respond to the emotional andmental starvation?
Can I open my home up to two,three people and say, come, have
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a cup of tea with me, share yoursorrow, share your grief, share
your struggles?
and hear them out, listen tothem, be their companion, be
their sister, be their brother.
Weeks go by, people don't seeeach other.
This is not the childhood wewere growing up.
We used to check in on eachother.
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People would play, haveunstructured time, spontaneously
check in each other.
Now, this is the challenge thatwe are all facing.
in building intentionalcommunity, strong, spiritual,
resilient communities who takecare of each other, who respond
to each other's emotional,mental needs, spiritual support,
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so that, God forbid, theireternal home is not lost.
Because once you lose youreternal future, your ultimate
home, your everlasting home,your akhira, then that's the
utter loss.
That needs to be our concernmore than providing shelter and
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food and clothing in the world.
Yes, those are important.
But I invite myself and everyoneto think about what it means
that now all these studiescoming out where people are
facing deep mental, spiritualstruggles, that we are all
called to to have responsibilitylike the Prophet Sallallahu
(09:06):
Alaihi Wasallam, that sacredresponsibility to bring more
rahmah and mercy and hope andlight and purpose into the
world.
And we can only do that.
It starts with us daily openingour hearts.
I shared that in the group.
For Allah to open your heart, toopen your home, and to open your
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pocket and share what you can.
Yes, financially, this is themonth, this is the month, this
is the moment where we aretrained and disciplined and
then, inshallah, carry it intothe future.
So those are the things that I'mthinking in terms of rahmah,
what is the ultimate mercy,compassion that you can give to
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another person, feeding themspiritually, feeding them,
nurturing them, supporting themspiritually.
because this is what Allah does.
He doesn't just address ourphysical needs.
So if we in Ramadan simply focuson addressing physical needs,
material needs, that is not aholistic care.
(10:12):
So we need to make sure that wenurture ourselves spiritually.
That's a priority because that'sthe core of everything.
If the heart is sound,everything else falls into
place.
We can overcome hardship.
We can overcome suffering.
We are not crushed by the eventsin the world.
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But sadly, that is the case thatI'm seeing.
A lot of people are goingthrough life and hardships
alone.
They are not willing or they arescared to be vulnerable to be
shared or they don't have timeto meet people during the week
to check in with each other butthat's the wonderful thing about
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sacred community sacredsisterhood and brotherhood and
to turn my home into a place ofmercy and remembrance and
learning and support that peoplecan be nurtured is so critical
in this moment because this issomething that we all need to
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keep in mind as we are enteringthe months of Ramadan.
What is it that the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
ultimately brought to us?
It's the spiritual sustenance.
We feel so alive by engagingwith the Quranic message.
It gives us purpose.
It gives us direction.
It allows us to discern rightfrom wrong.
It gives us a holy GPSorientation in the world, how to
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read the events in the life,what to make of suffering and
death and illness.
And especially seeing so manyyoung people around me being in
physical pain, chronic pain,going through some fatal
illnesses like cancer, that'seven more critical to help them
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to cultivate a sacred outlookand script To flip the script,
thinking that they are not aproductive Muslim because they
cannot fast in the months ofRamadan, please, everybody who
hears me out right now, if youare thinking that you're not a
good Muslim or a good person offaith because you cannot
physically fast in the months ofRamadan, please let go of that
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notion.
There's nothing in the Islamictradition, nothing in our sacred
resources that suggests thatthat you are less of a Muslim,
less productive if you are notparticipating in the fast of
Ramadan just because you havesome physical illness or
physical hardship and a medicalexpert doctor has said you
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cannot fast.
I hear that in this moment.
Please let go of that.
That is not a healthy way toapproach Ramadan because the
sense of productivity This ideaof success, what it looks like
to be a successful Muslim, aproductive Muslim, those are not
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acts of mercy to yourself.
This is harmful.
And Allah prohibits us to harmourselves because these are not
acts of mercy.
We have to show compassion toourselves first to accept and
surrender and find peace.
and embrace the notion if Allahhas placed us into a moment of
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physical illness or physicalsickness, and we cannot
participate fully in the fast ofRamadan, that doesn't mean that
we are less valuable or worthy,or somehow we have no value.
Those are very worldly,egotistic understandings of
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Islam.
So I've been talking about thisa little bit, reflecting because
this idea of how a certainMuslim has to look like.
They have to be able-bodied andfully participate physically in
charge.
Those are false notions.
We don't know where the qualityof our worship lies in Ramadan
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and beyond.
Maybe that illness or thatphysical hardship that prevents
you participating in the fast ofRamadan, maybe that certainly is
an act of rahmah.
But it's this egocentricunderstanding of Islam, how I
need to look and participate asa Muslim, our own vision of what
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a productive Muslim looks like.
And if we fail, if we are notthat, then we feel like a
failure.
And that is putting pressure onourselves, unnecessary harm and
zulm.
It's oppression to our soulsbecause Allah loves and his
compassion embraces the ones whoare also going through physical
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suffering, through some severeillnesses.
I say that because I see in myown circle, brothers, sisters
struggling with very severediseases and the idea that they
cannot participate in the monthsof Ramadan, they are putting
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that on themselves, this ideathat they feel like a failure or
missing out.
Of course, it's a beautifulblessing to fast in the months
of Ramadan.
It's an amazing act of Ihsanthat we can do so, and we should
try our best.
But if we cannot do that, ifAllah placed us in a certain
condition, We are leaning intothat.
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We are accepting and we aresurrendering while still seeking
treatment, of course, medicaltreatment and all of that.
But if we reject the illness, ifwe see it as an enemy, if we see
it alien, then we actuallyperpetuate and exacerbate the
pain and we become victims.
(16:18):
And to understand that we haveagency and that we are valuable
despite that, Certain physicalchallenge is really important in
this moment.
So please convey this message.
There's nothing in Islam thattells us that Allah says only if
you are physically able inparticipating, you are a better
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Muslim.
There's no such thing.
This is something that we createin our own minds.
So we need to flip the script.
And I say that in relation toRahmah, because Allah's Rahmah
is all encompassing.
It's so vast, it's so expansivethat it also includes illness.
Illness is not outside the foldof Allah's rahmah.
(17:01):
We don't know what impactfultransformations are happening
when somebody is bedridden.
You know, the quality of theirworship, the quality of their
patience, the quality of theiracceptance, the quality of their
gratitude, of their trust, oftheir resilience.
There are important internaltransformations and elevations
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happening, we are not alwaysoften aware.
And of course, as Muslims, we donot ask to suffer or we do not
ask or desire illness.
But when Allah has decreed it tous, when it's our destiny to go
through some painful chapter,then we must be accepting of
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that.
And that, inshallah, makes thenthe journey easier.
So let me read a little bit hereand then hopefully wrap it up.
O man, O human being, if you aretruly a human being, say, in the
name of God, the merciful, thecompassionate, find that
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intercessor.
For sure it is clearly,self-evidently divine mercy,
which without forgetting orconfusing any of them, raises,
nurtures and administers theinnumerable plant and animal
species on the earth atprecisely the right time and
with perfect order, wisdom andbeneficence, generosity and
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stamps the seal of divineoneness on the face of the globe
of the earth.
The existence of divine mercy isas certain as the existence of
the beings on the face of theearth.
So do the beings offer evidencesof its reality to their own
number.
So basically everything aroundus expresses or displays Allah's
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vast and expansive mercy.
I mean, you see it right nowwhen I look out my window and
the snowflakes coming down, thissense of peace and gentleness
and kindness.
You just feel it.
It's an experiential knowing.
You see it in the birds and howAllah protects them in this
harsh season.
They are not freezing.
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They are protected.
Allah closes them.
dresses them with specialfeathers, gives them the
knowledge to navigate the harshweathers.
We were just the other daywalking, doing a nature walk,
and we had a bird specialist, asister in our group.
And I asked her, how do thebirds even know how to navigate
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and how to orient themselves inthis migration season?
How do they find the way?
I'm unable these days to...
to find a street without the GPSsystem.
And she said, scientists stilldon't know.
The birds, they always findtheir way.
They are never lost.
They never get lost.
For me, this is a display ofAllah's mercy, of His rahmah.
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He sends these birds with aninborn GPS system.
They find their way.
They are never lost.
Allah is Al-Hadi, the guide.
He gives them the orientation.
They find their way, they knowhow to go into the warmer
regions, and then they comeback.
SubhanAllah, isn't that adisplay of Allah's mercy?
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Who else?
I mean, how do they know how toorient themselves, how to find
their way, if it's not Allah whohas equipped them, endowed them,
sent them ready into the world?
Not one bird is neglected.
Not one little creature isneglected, forgotten, abandoned.
So how come that we sometimesthink that in our, in this
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journey of life, in our lows andhighs, that we are somehow
forgotten or abandoned, or it'sjust us who's going through some
difficult time?
No, that's not the case.
See how Allah guides them inthis harsh season, in this cold
season.
If it would be me outside, Iwould be frozen.
But there I look at the cardinalon the tree and subhanAllah he
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says, see how Allah protects mein his divine mercy.
I'm not cold, I'm not shaken.
That's complete trust in hismercy, embracing his mercy,
seeing his mercy and cultivatingthe sacred outlook into the
creation and the world.
And then you take it backinwardly and you also feel that
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Allah is constantly surroundingyou with his rahmah.
Everything in this universe issent to us, made servant to us.
The Quran constantly tells usthat this world is prepared for
the human being.
The air, the wind is so clear.
You go out, you feel refreshed,you feel rejuvenated,
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re-energized.
The cleanliness, the purity, thehygiene, subhanAllah.
Isn't that divine mercy?
What else are we looking for?
If I'm here in this house for along period without that clean
air, without Allah's pure airthat he sends me out of his
divine mercy, I would cease tothrive.
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I would cease to live.
Yet constantly, every second,Allah cleanses, purifies,
provides us clean, fresh oxygen.
That is his whole encompassingmercy.
None of us goes into a store andbuys bottles of oxygen.
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Yet we see people strugglingbreathing.
So it's a basic nyama, basicsustenance, existential need
like clean air.
We are not even mindful of that.
Who does that?
I mean, we have to do it in ourlittle home every hour and then
to cleanse the air, purify theair, but you go outside, it's
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just there.
We just take it for granted.
And none of us saysalhamdulillah for that fresh air
that Allah, out of his mercy,creates every second for me so I
can breathe.
And it's accessible to everyone.
Nobody buys it.
Nobody has to pay for it.
Nobody is excluded.
Nobody is otherized.
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The non-believer and thebeliever, everybody is enjoying
the same rahmah.
And Allah wants us to displaythat same rahmat to each other.
It's not my job, my duty tojudge another person.
I don't know their context,their circumstances.
Leave judgment to Allah.
Your job, your duty, Zainab, isto meet everyone with that
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unconditional compassion thatAllah has called you to show, to
display.
And that means to defer ultimatejudgment to him.
We don't know people'scircumstances.
We don't know people's socialupbringings, their struggles,
their contexts, theirinfluences.
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So leaving that and meetingpeople in that neutral,
compassionate space, regardlessof their convictions and
beliefs.
Yes, I do have my principles andbeliefs.
I do not compromise or negotiatethem.
But that's this ultimatefundamental principle in guiding
human interaction, is to meetpeople with a sense of
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compassion.
And that's what the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
showed us, as this ultimatemercy to the worlds, to meet
always people with a sense ofcompassion and granting them
forgiveness.
Seeing that they've been also,that actually when they do
something harmful, or followsome misguided idea that they
(24:52):
are harming themselves, not meor you.
And to see that and giveeverybody that kind of
compassionate behavior and meetpeople with a sense of embrace
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to make them feel safe And wesee that in the life of the
Prophet Sallallahu AlaihiWasallam.
And in this month again, as weare welcoming the months of
Ramadan, another thing thatpeople are starving for is
forgiveness.
Let's try to work towardsforgiveness.
Because one of Allah's name isAl-Ghaffar, Al-Afu, Al-Tawwab.
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And this is a month to becleansed, to be purified.
to let go of grudges.
And this is not something thathappens overnight, but at least
have the Nia in our hearts towork towards that.
In this month, I want to arriveat a sound heart, at a peaceful
heart, return to my Lord inpeace.
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I will let go of grudges.
I will let go of negative anddestructive feelings.
You hear so many stories aboutpeople not talking to each other
because of something they said20 years ago.
Forgiveness is not aboutallowing the harm to continue.
(26:16):
It's about coming closer toAllah.
Our duty as Muslims is to comecloser to Allah, our aim, and
help others to come closer toAllah.
That's why the ProphetSallallahu Alaihi Wasallam
expressed forgiveness, even tothe most horrific crimes.
And he was human.
I mean, we know that even whenthe companion Vahshi, may Allah
(26:41):
be pleased with him, came to himand said he seeks forgiveness
for the murder of his beloveduncle Hamza, the Prophet granted
it to him.
But he said, please don't appearagain in my sight because I'm
afraid the negative feelingsmight come up again.
(27:04):
So it doesn't mean when weforgive in our heart or let go
of certain things that we caneasily forget the past.
That just bubbles up.
It's just what makes us human.
We are reminded of that painfulaction or moment.
But when we are working towardsforgiveness, towards maghfirah,
(27:28):
we are coming closer to Allahand we are allowing the person
also to come closer to Allah.
I'm always terrified by thethought thinking, somebody on
judgment day, somebody I'm stillstruggling with forgiveness.
He's there standing in the heatand terrifying moment on
(27:50):
judgment day.
And because of me, he's waiting.
Because of me, because Icouldn't give him forgiveness.
And I'm the obstacle.
I mean, that terrifies me, thatthought, thinking, I don't want
anybody to be in that difficultyand hardship on Judgment Day.
I don't want anybody to, I don'twant to be in between that
person and Allah.
(28:11):
Allah wanted to forgive thatperson, but it's still the
person, you know, theinterrelationship, the human
relationship that needs to besolved out.
And if people don't reconcile orgrant each other that
forgiveness, that makes it somuch harder for us on that
(28:33):
terrifying day, that judgmentday where we all just, we don't
want anybody to have more extraburden and hardship.
So trying to work towardsforgiveness in this month of
Rachman, we all have things thatwe carry with us in our hearts.
Forgiveness is not an easy thingto do, but we know Allah loves
(28:54):
it.
The person might not be worthit, but Allah is worth it.
There are a lot of people whoare difficult to love, granted.
And when you hear people'sstories, you say, yes, sister,
brother, you're absolutelyright.
He's not deserving of yourforgiveness, but Allah is
deserving.
Allah is deserving.
(29:17):
So that's why, hopefully, I praythat we each can work towards
forgiveness, towards liberationof the heart, that true purpose.
Otherwise, we become slaves ofour past.
We constantly replay the painfulpast, the painful harm, the
painful moments.
Oh, this person did this 20years ago.
(29:38):
They said this 20 years ago.
They've done this.
They hurt me.
They harm me.
And to be clear, it doesn't meanto allow the harm to continue.
Allah did not create us soothers can oppress us.
We have to create boundaries asan act of rahmah towards
ourself.
We have to create that boundaryand say no.
But at the same time, we canalso work towards forgiveness.
(30:03):
Saying this person, that's whatI love in the Risale-i Nurah
section on uhuwa, sisterhood andbrotherhood, teaching us to
minimize some of the evilbecause there's shaitan, There's
the role and the temptations ofthe devil and Satan.
So we all fall into misguidedbehavior or wrongdoing because
(30:25):
of Shaitan's temptations orwhispering.
We all have that reality.
Then there's also the innerreality of our nafs, of our
lower egos, the inner struggle,the constant temptations and the
struggle to be a better person.
It's not easy.
And then that last portion, isour portion or the person's
(30:48):
portion.
So what's beautiful here to tryto minimize things a little bit.
So there is the socialdeterminism part.
There is the part where we wereall born into certain
circumstances.
We learned certain wrongbehaviors, adopted certain
patterns for maybe dysfunctionalfamilies and marriages and being
(31:11):
raised in a certain way.
That's that.
And then we struggle to unlearnand relearn healthy behaviors.
Then there's our nafs and thenthere's also shaitan.
And when you minimize andminimize, minimize, maybe we can
arrive to compassion towardsthat other person and say, he
(31:35):
had a difficult, you know, therewas a difficult context.
He didn't have anybody to guidehim, to show him, to teach him,
to mentor him.
There's so many factors in aperson's wrongdoing, in our
wrongdoing.
And to grant ourselvesforgiveness, also the things we
didn't know in the past.
(31:56):
You did the things that you knewat that time and you acted upon
it and to forgive yourself thatyou didn't know any better then.
But now if you've evolved,you've changed.
And you hug that young girl oryoung person and you say, it's
okay.
It's okay.
We can make mistakes, right?
(32:19):
So to arrive at that kind ofcompassionate place, showing
forgiveness to ourselves, and Iwant Allah to show me
forgiveness.
So maybe by expressingforgiveness to others, that also
helps to come closer to Allah'sname, Al-Ghaffar.
That's the ultimate goal.
And another expression of Rahmahis forgiveness.
(32:42):
So, urging everyone, myself, inthis month of Ramadan to
reconcile, to work towardsforgiveness, to work towards
restoration, to bring heartstogether, and inshallah come out
with a sound heart, a heart thatthen goes back, returns to Allah
(33:10):
in peace, in peace.
in serenity, in soundness,saying, alhamdulillah, I have a
clean slate.
I don't want anybody, I don'twant to be at somebody's
graveyard and have regrets,remorses, I should have, I could
have.
And we don't want to be, deathis a powerful reminder.
(33:32):
And alhamdulillah, in my ownlife, as I'm thinking about
this, showing each otherforgiveness, It was such a
beautiful moment recently whensomebody that I had really
difficulty, all of a suddensaid, please forgive me.
I didn't know any better.
Nobody showed me.
Nobody guided me.
I acted upon a lot ofmisinformation.
(33:54):
And just asking for forgivenesswas such a bold, courageous,
brave act.
I was in awe.
And I shared that and I said, itwas such a beautiful moment that
somebody like this, so stern andstrong, but as we age also, we
look at the arc of our life andwe see it with more nuance, more
(34:16):
complexity.
When we are younger, we thinkblack and white, but when you
are aging, that's the beautifulthing about aging, I guess, is
you think with more compassionabout others and what happened
in your life.
So that's also something that isrelated to mercy, to rahmah.
Allah wants us To forgiveourselves, to forgive others,
(34:39):
and this is not a one-dayprocess, but at least to have
the intention to at least worktowards that and to be gentle
and kind in that process and notto think that this has to be
happening overnight.
Because this is what Allah wantsand He is deserving of that.
(35:01):
Just as there is a seal of mercyand stamp of divine oneness on
the face of the earth, so on theface of man's nature is a stamp
of divine mercy that is notinferior to the stamp of
compassion and vast stamp ofmercy on the face of the
universe.
Simply man has so comprehensivea nature, he is as though the
point of focus of a thousand andone divine names.
(35:25):
And again here, Allah shows hismercy to everyone, all people.
In this world, the rahmah isaccessible to all, to those with
wrongdoing, with misbehavior,with false conduct.
So we can emulate that.
We can imitate that mercy.
We should expand in that andalways try to always err on the
(35:51):
side of mercy and compassion.
And we will never go wrong inthat regard because this is the
divine quality of Allah in thisworld.
And he wants us to expand, toexpand in that mercy vast like
the universe.
Don't narrow it to one place,one country, one territory.
(36:12):
No hate, no exclusion, nodiscrimination, no racism, no
aggressive, excessivenationalism.
Those are creating...
basically constructing thesebarriers and divisions and walls
between human beings.
It's one human family and tryingto bring everybody together
(36:36):
under the umbrella of mercy.
And while these differences areunique and they are created by
Allah's will, they are not whatare the foundation for
relationships.
Relationship is compassion.
That's the best in the humanbeing, the quality.
People will always remember howwe made them feel.
(36:57):
It's not the knowledge or thelecturing, but how we made them
feel, that compassionate,caring, affectionate presence.
And I see that all the time whensomebody dies, and people talk
about how accessible they were,how kind they were, generous
they were, compassionate theywere, nonjudgmental.
(37:21):
Those are all acts of mercy, andwe see that displayed by Allah.
Everybody has access to cleanwater, clean air, the endless
blessings, the food.
It is only the human being whodenies that to one another, who
excludes, who denies.
(37:44):
who discriminates and oppresses,who takes away, who's greedy.
And so our goal is to expandthat mercy, vast and vast, and
to meet everyone with that senseof compassion.
O man, O human being, is it atall possible that the one who
gives you this face and placessuch a stamp of mercy and seal
(38:04):
of oneness on it would leave youto your own devices, attach no
importance to you, pay noattention to your actions, make
the whole universe which isturned towards you futile and
pointless, and make the tree ofcreation rotten and
insignificant with decayedfruit?
Would he cause his mercy to bedenied, although it is as?
(38:28):
Although it is as obvious as thesun, as well as his wisdom,
which is as clear as daylight,and neither of which can in any
way be doubted, nor are in anyway deficient, God forbid.
O men, understand that there isa way to ascend to the throne of
divine mercy, and that is,Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.
(38:50):
should like really mindfully saythese holy words, in the name of
Allah, the merciful, thecompassionate.
I begin every act, everyinteraction, every thought,
every encounter with a humanbeing with Ar-Rahman.
I'm going to meet this personwith Ar-Rahman.
How does Allah want me to meetthis person, to interact with
(39:15):
this person, to be at myworkplace, at school, in my
family, In all my interactions,how does Ar-Rahman come to life?
Or am I disrespecting Allah'sAr-Rahman?
Am I showing harshness?
Am I showing too much judgment?
Am I weedy?
(39:36):
Am I limiting my compassion?
So these are the questions thatactually the basmala, that's why
it is so center and core to allwhat we are doing.
It is basically a prayer, astarting point.
In my interactions, it's notabout trying to be just, but the
(39:59):
mercy, to really anchor myselfin mercy and try to show that in
the best way I can.
If you want to understand theimportance of this ascent, Look
at the beginning of the 114surahs, the chapters of the
Quran of miraculous exposition,and at the beginnings of all
(40:20):
estimable books, and at thestart of all good works.
So if you want something to begood, we start in the name of
Allah.
And even if things do not playout the way we want, which is
another expression ormanifestation of egotism, like I
explained earlier, That still isstill, everything still is
(40:46):
wrapped in mercy.
So you might start off your daywith the basmala, but then you
go on the route or you enteredthe car and you have caught, an
accident happened.
Does that mean that rahmah isnot at play?
No.
Allah's name, ar-Rahman, isstill there.
Not maybe on the surface.
(41:07):
Yes, it's painful, it's chaotic,It's destructive, but underneath
all of it, the rahmah is stillworking its way through.
It's not always evident in thefirst sight, in the illness or
the pain or the suffering or thehardship, but the rahmah is
there.
And it's for us to uncover thedeeper layers of it.
(41:30):
So yes, when I'm looking at mytable with the blessings of
fruit, that is rahmah evident.
But sometimes in the toughmoments of our lives, like I
said, accidents, hardships,disasters, illness, loss, death,
you might think, where's therahmah?
(41:51):
Like many of these Muslimbrothers, sisters might be
struggling.
Where's the rahmah?
Where's Allah's mercy?
If there's a merciful Lord, Godor creator, why does he allow
for this?
Hasha, as if Allah is saying,out of touch with his creation.
Can anybody who is immersed inthe book of creation ever claim
that?
No, but that's the ultimatetest.
(42:14):
That's the ultimate invitation.
Are you able to see my mercybehind the veil, behind the veil
of confusion and chaos?
So, and that is where then weare, Waste was the ultimate,
where we learned trust andtawakkul and patience and
(42:38):
resilience and persistence.
And we learned the deepermeanings of Allah's name,
Al-Hakim.
What's the meaning here?
What's the purpose?
How do I bring life and beautyin this event?
It's up to us.
We can decide.
There are many people we've seenin the pandemic or in other
(42:59):
global events.
Many people who turn to Allahand many people who sadly reject
Allah.
One event, but multipledifferent responses.
So many people, even now withall the sufferings around the
world, many people run closer toAllah and many people reject
(43:24):
Him.
That's the test, that's thefilter, but we have the choice.
We are deciding which way andwhat we see, what we want to
see.
But we have the Quranic guide.
We have the book of theuniverse.
We have the prophets, themessengers.
We have our holy GPS system.
We have our holy map making.
(43:49):
But ultimately, it's a humanchoice.
how we want to orient ourselvesin the world.
If we begin in the name ofAllah's mercy, we will always
see mercy.
It's how we see the world, howour inner outlook is.
The things are not the way theyare.
They are the way we see them.
That's very important.
(44:10):
So Allah says in many of thesesacred narrations, I am
according to the assumption ofmy servant.
If you think Allah is out thereto torture you, if I think that
Allah is out there to torture meor punish me or send me the
illness to torture me or neglectme, then this is how I will
(44:33):
experience it.
But if I experience my illness,my aging, my struggles as a form
of elevation, as a form oftransformation, as a form of
positive change, then I willcome closer to Him.
I'll see all of this as acts ofmercy.
Allah, this was hard, but I'velearned so much through these
(44:56):
tough times.
You've taught me a lot.
You've shaped me.
You've formed me.
We just read it.
Allah is shaping your face.
The wrinkles on my face, my faceis shaped by him, al-musawwir.
Why do I think that my characteris not shaped by him?
That my weaknesses and mystrengths, that Allah in His
(45:20):
mercy wants to bring out mystrength and jewels and maybe
wants to minimize my flaws.
That's also acts of mercy.
So to finish up, a clear proofof the God-determined grandeur
of in the name of Allah is thatImam Shafi, may Allah be pleased
with him, one of the veryforemost Islamic scholars said,
(45:42):
in the name of Allah, themerciful, the compassionate is
only one verse, yet it wasrevealed 114 times in the Quran.
As-salamu alaykum warahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
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