Wan Auni Farhan, Salsabilla Wan Aidi, Aiman Muhaimin Wan Aidi Surah Al-Hadid, Verses 16-17 لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَنْ تَخْشَعَ قُلُوبُهُمْ لِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَمَا نَزَلَ مِنَ الْحَقِّ وَلَا يَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ مِنْقَبْلُ فَطَالَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْأَمَدُ فَقَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ ۖ وَكَثِيرٌ مِنْهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ ﴿١٦﴾ اعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُحْيِي الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا ۚ قَدْ بَيَّنَّا لَكُمُ الْآيَاتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ ﴿١٧﴾ Translation: ‘Has the time not come for those who have believed that their hearts should become humbly submissive at the remembrance of Allah and what has come down of the truth? And let them not be like those who were given the Scripture before, and a long period passed over them, so their hearts hardened; and many of them are defiantly disobedient (16). Know that Allah gives life to the earth after its lifelessness. We have made clear to you the signs; perhaps you will understand (17).’ Asalamu alaikum Qur’an Weekly, We are on the 27th juz’ and we are in Surah Al-Hadeed, surah number 57. I recited two ayah’s to you, numbers 16 and 17. These ayahs are very powerful. These Madani (revealed in Madinah) surahs that are at the end of the 27th juz’, and continue into the the 28th juz’ are all supposed to take a nation of Muslims that are weak in faith and they’re supposed to shake them up and revitalize their faith. And Allah just has this way of speaking to us, that if you just read these ayahs while you’re conscious of the fact that it is Allah talking to you, they’re just really life changing ayahs. ‘أَلَمْ يَأْنِ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا’ (Alam Ya’ni Lilladhīna ‘Āmanū), hasn’t the time yet come for those who believed?’ Isn’t now the time for those who believe ‘أَن تَخْشَعَ قُلُوبُهُمْ لِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ’ (An Takhsha`a Qulūbuhum Lidhikri Allāhi), that their hearts should be overwhelmed with awe by remembering Allah, or because of the remembrance of Allah. That their hearts should be filled with awe because they want to remember Allah also in order to remember Allah? How do they want to remember Allah? ‘وَمَا نَزَلَ مِنَ الْحَقِّ’ (Wa Mā Nazala Mina Al-Ĥaqqi), and their hearts should be filled with awe because of what came down of the truth. That just listening to the Qur’an should just overwhelm them and they should just feel this awe. We’ve been listening to taraweeĥ for 27 days now. Those of you that have been going have been listening to Qur’an for 27 days. Allah is asking the question, isn’t it time that you felt something? That you felt overwhelmed that Allah is talking to you through these words? ‘وَلَا يَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ مِن قَبْلُ,’ (Wa Lā Yakūnū Kālladhīna ‘Ūtū Al-Kitāba Min Qablu), ‘and they better not become like those who the book was given to way before them,’ ‘فَطَالَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْأَمَدُ,’ (Faţāla `Alayhimu Al-’Amadu),then a long period of deterioration passed over them, ‘فَقَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ,’ (Faqasat Qulūbuhum), and their hearts became hard. You could read the book over them and it wouldn’t make a difference. It wouldn’t affect them. They weren’t emotionally connected to their book. We’re learning in this ayah that we’re supposed to have an emotional, not just an intellectual, relationship with the Qur’an. We’re supposed to have a relationship that moves us to tears. You’re supposed to constantly think Allah is talking to you when you’re listening to the Qur’an. That’s the drive you want to have with the Qur’an. That is this month’s opportunity to make this the month of Qur’an. That’s what we’re leaving behind; the opportunity to really turn ourselves into people that have a relationship with Allah and the rope that connects Allah and us together is this book. And every time we experience this book, we feel this closeness to Allah that just moves us to tears. The heart should be overwhelmed with the fear of Allah, with the awe of Allah, with the grandeur of Allah. Your muscles should become numb and this is part of the meaning of خشوع (khushoo) ; of the muscles becoming numb. You just feel this sense of being overwhelmed. ‘وَكَثِيرٌ مِّنْهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ’ (WaKathīrun Minhum Fāsiqūna),and most of them are corrupt, so many of those people are corrupt. In other words, there will be people who have a relationship with the book but it won’t be emotional at all, it will just be ritualistic. And that is a tragedy. That is a spiritual tragedy when our relationship with the Qur’an is nothing more than ritualistic. And this is the complaint of this ayah. When the hearts become hard, it’s like the hearts are dead, right? So the next ayah I want to share with you, [Ustadh Nouman makes an ooof sound], subhanAllah! ‘اعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُحْيِي الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا,’ (A`lamū ’Anna Allāha Yuĥyī Al-’Arđa Ba`da Mawtihā) Look at the placement of this ayah. You had better know that Allah gives life to the earth after it had died. What does this ayah have to do with the last ayah? In the last ayah, hearts became hard; they were dead. And Allah says, I know how to bring the earth back to life you don’t think I can bring your heart back to life? ‘تَعْقِلُونَ قَدْ بَيَّنَّا لَكُمُ الْآيَاتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ , (Qad Bayyannā Lakumu Al-’Āyāti La`allakumTa`qilūna), we’re clarifying the signs to you so you can apply your intellect. Think a little. Think a little. Think about what Allah is saying when He says that He can bring the hearts back to life, bring the plants back to life, bring the dead earth in the season that it comes back to life. Why am I bringing this up? You know there’s a particular season when the earth is green. The earth comes back to life. It was dead for a while and spring comes and it’s just ‘ربيع’ (rabee),spring. Everything rises and everything is lively and beautiful and colorful. Ramadan is the spring of our hearts. Ramadan is when our hearts come alive because we are connected to the Qur’an in Ramadan. That’s what it’s supposed to be. And this spring doesn’t have to turn into fall. That’s up to you. Allah concentrated these 30 days so you can avoid other appetites and focus on your spiritual appetite. But from here on out if you and I can carry this relationship, keep reading a little Qur’an with reflection and serious pondering. If we can just take in a little bit of reminder every day, a little bit more I understand about this book every day, a little bit closer and closer to Allah I get every day, then I won’t have to be like those whom a long period passed over and they were completely desensitized to their book. This is a very personal appeal to myself and to all of you. That we don’t get lazy with Qur’an; that we don’t allow the Qur’an to become a passive relationship. That it remains an active relationship; that every Salah comes to life because of it. And outside of Salah we try to understand the language of it and the meaning of it, as best we can. And Allah will open those doors for you, I promise you. Allah will open the doors of understanding, and the doors of remembering the meaning, and the doors of being conscious of what is being recited in the prayer. All of that will start coming into place. You just have to have the right intention. Allah is saying, ‘Isn’t it time yet?’ As if He is waiting. ‘أَلَمْ يَأْنِ,’ (‘Alam Ya’ni), Isn’t it now? Isn’t it yet time?’ So this is the time we respond to Allah, ‘بلى’ (balā), Yes, it is time.’ It is time that we turn back to you. It is time that our hearts soften. May Allah عز وجل give all of us soft hearts that tremble and that are overwhelmed by His remembrance and his Qur’an. And may Allah عز وجل make this Qur’an a case and حجة ĥujja in our favor on Judgment Day and not a case against us.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Aug 2013 23:07:55 +0000
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