Opening

If you won't aid him, Allah has already aided him - Sheikh Abdul Nasir Jangda

Opening

Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Raheem. Al-hamdu lillahi was-salatu was-salamu ala Rasulillahi wa ala alihi wa sahbihi ajmaeen. As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

Introduction: Our Community's Challenges

As the Muslim community continues to face different challenges, there's often the question about exactly what do we do in this situation. What is our role? What is the solution to our problems? What is our game plan or plan of action in these circumstances? Particularly our community, and rightfully so, has been really concerned about Islamophobia and all the potential impact that it could have upon our community.

To talk about this, I wanted to take the opportunity tonight to share some thoughts with everyone.

The Divine Introduction of the Prophet ﷺ

Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى - subhanahu wa ta'ala) in the Qur'an, in surat al-Tawbah, He introduces the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in summary to all of humanity. Very powerfully, Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى - subhanahu wa ta'ala) says:

"There has certainly come to you a messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; [he is] concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful."

Breaking Down This Beautiful Verse

(لَقَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ - laqad ja'akum rasulun min anfusikum) - "That undoubtedly there came to you a messenger who was from amongst you." He understood your circumstances. He understood your pain and your suffering. He experienced your happiness and your sadness. There came to you a messenger from amongst you.

(عَزِيزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ - 'azizun 'alayhi ma 'anittum) - The word عزيز refers to something being very heavy, very cumbersome, very burdensome, weighty. It is very heavy on him. What is so heavy upon him? (مَا عَنِتُّمْ - ma 'anittum) - Your suffering is hard on him.

(حَرِيصٌ عَلَيْكُمْ - harisun 'alaykum) - And the word حرص in the Arabic language refers to desiring, wanting something good. Oftentimes in the human context, it's used to refer to the human desire for wealth. But it has a more

general broad meaning of just wanting what is good. (حَرِيصٌ عَلَيْكُمْ - harisun 'alaykum) - He is continuously, fully invested into your well-being.

(بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ رَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ - bil-mu'minina ra'ufun rahim) - And then the end part is the most profound and the most beautiful. Where Allah says that specifically with the believers, he is extremely compassionate and very, very merciful and loving.

The Uniqueness of Prophetic Character

And this is really profound because oftentimes part of the human failing is that the closer people are to us, the more we take them for granted. The closer we are to people, the more we take advantage of them. And subsequently, this rule applies with the majority of human beings that you can admire someone from a distance. But the more you get to know them, the less you are impressed with them. The less you admire them.

But the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was the opposite. The closer you were to him, the more you admired him. The people who knew him the longest throughout the entirety of his life, they were the first to devote themselves to him. They loved him more than anyone else.

So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم while being merciful and compassionate with everyone, when someone came into the community, he did not abuse them. He did not take them for granted, but he loved them. And he was merciful with them and compassionate to them. He took care of them.

The Core Quality: Empathy

Defining Empathy vs. Sympathy

The entirety of this verse presents to us maybe one of the most striking characteristics and qualities of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. And that is empathy. Empathy is such a quality that is so far gone from our social reality today that most people do not even know the meaning of the word empathy.

There is sympathy which we are familiar with and then there is empathy. And it strikes people, it shocks people when you tell them that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was not sympathetic because the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was empathetic.

What is sympathy? Sympathy is to be able to see, to acknowledge someone else's pain. To just be able to acknowledge their pain is sympathy.

Empathy is to feel their pain. It is to cry with them, to sit with them, to be with them, to internalize their suffering and to yourself do whatever you can to alleviate their pain and their suffering. That is who the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was.

The Prophetic Need for Empathy Today

He was the epitome of empathy. He was the personification, the manifestation of empathy. And the reason why I mention this, the reason why I bring this up is that the circumstance that we are in right now, the situations that we face ahead currently, we need this prophetic quality of empathy once again.

It is not only one of the most remarkable qualities of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, but it is maybe the most desperately needed today.

Stories of Prophetic Empathy

Empathy with Former Enemies

There are so many remarkable, striking, eye-opening stories from the life of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم which shows his capacity to be able to feel another's pain and to be able to put himself aside and be able to make someone else the focus of his entire attention. There are stories where enemies, the enemies of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم showed up at his doorstep.

Ikrimah ibn Abi Jahl

When Ikrimah, the son of Abu Jahl, the son of the man who declared war against the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم and Ikrimah followed in his father's footsteps, he fought the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. When he comes in front of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to accept Islam, not only does the Prophet grant him total immunity, but the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم instructs his companions, do not speak ill of his father in front of him. Because yes, his father was a bad person, but it's still his father and it will hurt him if you say bad things about his father in front of him.

Khalid ibn Walid

Khalid bin Walid (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ - radi Allahu anhu) when he accepted Islam, he had waged war against the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He had fought against the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the Muslims. Khalid bin Walid and Amr bin al-'As, two leaders of Mecca, who opposed him.

The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah in the sixth year, the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, part of the terms of the treaty was that the Muslims would come back the following year. And they would perform Umrah. For three days they would be in Mecca. This was agreed to.

When the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the Muslims came back the following year, Khalid and Amr, they protested the presence of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in Mecca. They said, we will not be in Mecca if he is in Mecca. They went outside of Mecca and protested his presence in the city of Mecca. That's how much enmity, how much hatred and animosity they had towards the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم.

But Khalid, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had this amazing quality to be able to put his own ego, himself aside and focus on someone else. He asked Khalid's brother Walid, who was a Muslim, where is

Khalid? He says, he's protesting you, O Messenger of God. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم complimented him. Khalid is an intelligent man. He shouldn't have this much trouble figuring this out.

He told Walid, write down what I say. I would like to send a personal message to the man who protests me. He complimented him. You are a brilliant man. We would love to have you as a brother in our family.

When Walid took the letter to his brother, it opened his eyes. And he said, I have to go and see the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم

The Conversion Experience

Amr ibn al-'As realizes, he's also coming to see the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. They meet up on the way. They arrive together.

Now listen to this. When they sit in front of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم,Amr will not look the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in the eyes. He says, why? Why won't you look at me? He says, I'm embarrassed in front of you. I fought you. I opposed you. I did so many terrible things to you. I'm ashamed of myself.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You are now our brother. Everything is forgotten. That capacity.

Khalid ibn Walid, when he sits in front the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمhe has tears in his eyes. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, what's wrong? He says, I did so many terrible things. Please pray that God forgives me.

How would we treat an enemy? The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم says, there's no need. God has already forgiven you. He says, I still need you. Ya Rasulullah, I need you to pray for me.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم makes dua for him. Oh Allah, forgive Khalid for anything that he's done. And immediately wins over the heart of Khalid. He says, that's exactly what I needed. This is what I needed. That was the capacity of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم

Empathy with Children

The Story of Hussain's Stuttering

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم practiced empathy with even children. He humbled himself and practiced such empathy with even children. His grandson Hussain (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ - radi Allahu anhu) used to stutter. And one time he was stuttering really badly in a gathering.

There were people around. He couldn't even make it through a complete sentence. And the people who were there, they narrate that the whole time, the child was trying to just piece one sentence together for so long.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sat there, looked at him, was smiling and remained quiet and let him finish the whole sentence. Did not interrupt him even once. Did not cut him off. Did not finish his words for him.

And when he was done, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم looked around the room and he saw everyone was looking at each other somewhat awkwardly. Feeling bad for the child who stuttered so poorly.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: (لَقَدْ وَرِثْهَا عَنْ عَمِّهِ مُوسَى - laqad warithaha 'an 'ammihi musa) "He has inherited this from his spiritual uncle Moses." That Musa used to stutter. Look at how the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم comes to the emotional aid and rescue of this child.

That is the empathy of the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم

Empathy in Times of Personal Grief

Jabir bin Abdullah's Story

Jabir bin Abdullah, a young man, 20 years old. He has seven younger sisters. His father dies in the battle of Uhud.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم suffered such pain on that day. His uncle, who was like an older brother to him, Hamza (رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ - radi Allahu anhu) was not only killed but his body was mutilated. 70 of the companions of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم died on that day. He buried 70 of his friends.

He's in so much pain. The Sahaba say that when he looked at the body of Hamza, we saw tears streaming down his eyes. And we heard like a grinding sound coming from his chest. His pain was so real that it physically was causing him agony.

But he looks at Jabir across the room whose father has died. 20-year-old young man, lost his father, has seven younger sisters. He looks in his eyes and he sees sadness. He sees the anxiety that he's overwhelmed.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم immediately is able to put himself aside. His own pain and suffering aside. He goes across the room and hugs Jabir and tells him, don't worry, I'll be here for you.

The Generous Heart

And cared about him so much, looked after him so much, that one time they were traveling together. Shortly thereafter, Jabir had a very nice animal that he was riding, a horse or a camel. The Prophet صلی الله عليه وسلم says, this animal is really impressive. He says, it's yours. It's a gift.

He says, absolutely not. I'll buy it from you. He says, okay, one dirham, one dollar. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم says, hey, don't mess around. It was worth, the narrator says it was worth about 200 dirham.

But the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم,it was worth 200. He said, I'll pay you 400.

When they get back to Medina, the Prophet sends him the money. He comes and he drops off the animal ties outside the house of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . A little while later, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم calls someone. He says, I need you to do something for me. You see this animal that's tied outside? I want you to take that animal and go give it to Jabir and tell him it's a gift from me.

صلى الله عليه وسلم This is the empathy of the Prophet

The Orphaned Boy

That same battle of Uhud, where he's still grappling with the reality that his uncle was murdered, assassinated, killed, mutilated, so ruthlessly. As they're walking back into the city of Medina, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would travel at the back of the army.

There are a bunch of children who have gathered together looking for their fathers and older brothers, awaiting their arrival. One of the boys who was waiting for his father Bashir, he sees the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and even that boy realizes that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is at the back of the army.

Once you see him, then there's no one else.

And in that moment, that boy realizes my father is not coming home. He's amongst the fallen. And the boy starts to cry.

And the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is already dealing with his own pain, his own suffering. He stops the animal, reaches down, picks up the boy, puts him on the animal with him and hugs him and consoles him and quiets him. And then he says to the boy:

"Don't cry son, don't worry. You'll never be alone. I'll be your father, Aisha will be your mother."

And then he turned to the other Sahaba companions, and he said, you see these children who are looking for their loved ones and don't find them. Pick them up, take care of them, console them and love them.

That is that quality, that intangible that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم taught us, that he left us with.

Our Response: Empathy for All Suffering

The Reality of Our Challenges

The reason why I bring this up here today, I go back to where I started. We are undoubtedly, without a shred of a doubt, we're facing great challenges in the form of Islamophobia and the vilification of our community. That is very, very scary. I understand and acknowledge.

But our response to tragedy is empathy. We have to understand that what we have to learn to do in this situation is practice empathy with the others who have also been persecuted, with others who have been treated wrongly.

Breaking Out of Self-Absorption

Our, and please pardon me and excuse me for my frankness, but we are completely infatuated with our own circumstance. Islamophobia, it is a problem, but we are so concerned with it. And I hear Muslims talking in the tone of, well, they came for the Muslims, I didn't say anything and then they came for me.

What we need to understand is that they didn't first come for us. They came for black people and are still coming for them. We didn't say anything. They came for Native Americans and still are, even their water, even their land. And we didn't say anything. We didn't do anything.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم never would have stood by and watched. He would have been the first one to aid and to help.

The Divine Principle of Help

This is that principle:

"If you do not aid him - Allah has already aided him"

We don't need other people to help us. We need Allah to help us. We need God's mercy. And God's mercy is bestowed upon those who are merciful to others. Allah helps those who help others.

"God continues to aid the person so long as the person aids his brother or sister."

The Call to Action

If we really, really are serious and concerned about the threats and the dangers that face our community, we will stop sleeping, we will stop worrying about crafting out our own little dream in suburbia, trying to buy that house and this car, and trying to raise our quality of life up to some arbitrary standard that has been granted to us, that has been pushed down our throat through consumerism.

We will stop worrying about these things and we'll actually get back to the prophetic legacy and that is to serve, and that is to work, and that is to care, and that is to be with the people, and to care for the people.

That's who we are. We are ambassadors of truth. We're ambassadors of God's mercy. We are representatives of the divine promise. That's what we have to get back to. This is our mandate. That's what's necessary.

The Nature of True Empathy

Beyond Rationalization

And one of the things that I wanted to share, and I've mentioned this a couple of times here and there, something that I'm still learning, and I need everyone to listen very carefully and at the same time, if you disagree for whatever reason, please forgive me. This is something I'm still learning.

This quality of empathy that we talked about, that we're talking about, feeling another person's pain, it does not require, empathy does not require for me to be able to rationalize or for me to be able to validate the other person's suffering.

We have this obsession of intellectually and rationally trying to analyze every situation. Stop trying to rationalize. Nobody cares about what I think about another person's circumstances. It is completely irrelevant whether I think a person's suffering is rightful or not, is appropriate or not, whether that person could have done this differently or that differently. That is not what that person is asking me to do.

That person is asking me to care. That person is asking me to just feel their pain. Allah tells me to have mercy indiscriminately. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم tells us to feel that person's pain, regardless of whether it makes sense to me or not.

The Simple Command

So get past this notion. Stop rationalizing. Stop trying to analyze other people's suffering. Have empathy. Feel their pain. And be with them. Sit with them. Cry with them. Pray with them. Talk to them. That is the صلى الله عليه وسلم legacy of our Messenger

The Divine Promise

And as the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم taught us that if that's what we can get back to:

(Tirmidhi 2485)

"Spread peace, feed the hungry, maintain family ties, and pray at night while people are sleeping, and you will enter Paradise in peace."

Allah will deliver us the ultimate promise. And the ultimate promise, once again, is not our material self- actualization is in the life of the hereafter. We will all enter paradise together for all of eternity in peace and tranquility enshrouded in the mercy of Allah جل جلاله

Closing

Rabbana atina fi'd-dunya hasanatan wa fi'l-akhirati hasanatan wa qina 'adhab an-nar

JazakumAllahu khayran wa as-salamu alaykum