Representing Islam - Shaykh Abdul Nasir Jangda

You know what's... I ask you a little question. What's the country with the largest Muslim population in the world today? Indonesia. Everybody knows, everybody's got Wikipedia.

Indonesia. How did Islam get to Indonesia? YouTube videos. How did Islam get to Indonesia? Businessmen.

Not to say that they weren't preaching because the sahabah were the ultimate dais. I mean they'd share Islam with anybody at any time. But it wasn't that they overtly went there as like missionaries to proselytize. They weren't evangelicals. They weren't like, you know, Quran thumpers, like we say Bible thumpers, right? That's not how they went there. They went there and they were doing business with people.

People were like, Wow, you're a really, really awesome guy. You're very honest. You're very, very nice. You're polite. There's something different about you. That's not how people do business here.

And so when that happened, then obviously that opens the door. Well, what's different about me? I'm a Muslim. And that's how people accepted Islam.

Knowledge as Character Development

I mean when you... What I was talking about earlier today was how knowledge, knowledge has just become another commodity to us. It's like money. Like we count money in our bank account, we count knowledge now. We measure knowledge. Right? Like I have more knowledge than you. Or he's got more knowledge than me.

Or they got more knowledge than we do. It's like we measure. How's it going, buddy? Hey. I just saw some very old friends after a long time. Get happy. Alright, so... So knowledge.

Knowledge isn't just information like just... You know, it's like a commodity. It's like a status, like a ranking. How many friends got on Facebook? How much knowledge I got? Right? Knowledge is meant to make you a better person.

Just to put it simply as I can, knowledge is meant to make you a better person. Similarly, Islam isn't just a status symbol. It's just not a status quo. It's not just to be able to say, we're going to Jannah, everybody's going to hell. End of story. JazakAllah khair. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. Right? That's not what Islam... Islam is meant to make me a better person. And Islam will spread and will carry on.

Warning Against Self-Impression (Ujub)

If we think we're so impressed, we are so impressed with ourselves. That's actually a quality, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم warned us about. It's called the Ujub.

When you become impressed with yourself. We're so impressed with ourselves because this many people are taking Shahada. It's nothing. This is nothing. If we were actually living up to what Islam requires of us, what it asks us to do, which is not a whole lot by the way. It's just if we were better people in our conduct and our character, the way we conduct ourselves, our honesty, our truthfulness, our sincerity with people when we deal with them, Islam would spread like wildfire.

This is the undeniable truth, folks. The Quran is the word of God Himself. Kalamullah, do you know what that means? That means Allah is talking. How could anybody refuse that? How could anybody resist that? Muhammad Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم was the most amazing man that ever lived. How can you resist that? But it's because we're not living up to it. People need something tangible, something physical to be able to access it.

The Story of Tufail and the Tribe of Ados

And when we do, inshaAllah, and it's not very difficult, this is that opportunity where we can make the decision, we can come to the conclusion, I'm gonna turn things around. And if we turn things around, let me show you how easy and simple it is. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمI was talking a little bit about his character and his conduct earlier today.

How did the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم conduct himself with people? How did he deal with people? With love, with compassion, with kindness and generosity. He put people before himself. He put people's needs before himself. He would sacrifice whatever he had to sacrifice himself in order to help other people. That's who he was. In the early days of Islam, there's a story about a man named Tufail from the tribe of Ados.

I shared this with our Mansfield congregation a few days ago. A man by the name of Tufail from the tribe of Ados. He accepted Islam, came to Makkah. Very interesting story how he accepted Islam. But he came to Makkah and accepted Islam with the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He stayed for a while, learned the basics of the religion. Then the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, now you go back to your tribe which lived a little bit farther away.

And he said, you go back and you share this message with them. He showed back up in a few weeks. Very, very soon. Like literally the time that it would take to just journey back, be there for a couple of days and then journey back to Makkah. He was back again in a month or so. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, Tufail, what are you doing back here? Said, O Messenger of Allah, I went there, I gave them the message, they didn't accept.

make dua, Allah destroys these people. Done. The Prophet of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم raised his hands. The Sahaba who were sitting around when they saw him raise his hands, they were like, oh no. Those people are gone. Can you imagine Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم? Gone, finished.

Not here, not that. Right? So they saw him raise his hands and they got worried for those people. And the Prophet of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم when he opened his mouth, he said the words

O Allah, give guidance to the people of Daus. And then he told Tufail, he said, now you go back to your people. But now you behave yourself. Behave yourself. Don't just go there and drop the hammer. Islam, bye.

Right? He said, now you go back and you invest into your people, you care for your people, you work for your people, you win their trust, you win their love, their compassion. You empathize with them. Empathy صلى الله عليه وسلم was one of the greatest qualities of the Prophet

عليه السلام The Dua of Musa

I'm gonna get completely off track, but it's okay, it's 3:30. I was just mentioning the dua yesterday. I was teaching the dua yesterday,

(Quran 20:25-27). From Surah Taha. The dua of Musa صلى الله عليه وسلم,where Musa صلى الله عليه وسلم said, take away my nervousness, my anxiety, my hesitation. Make my job easier for me, means I'm about to go talk to the most difficult man on earth, Firaun.

Make it a little bit easier, soften him up a little bit. And then he said, Untie a knot from my tongue. And in the context of that ayah, we've been told by the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلمMusa عليه السلام used to stutter. Musa عليه السلام used to stutter. We have that in tradition, in narrations, in tafasir, you'll find it. Musa عليه السلام used to stutter.

The Beautiful Story of Hussain رضي الله عنه

I found a very beautiful hadith, subhanAllah. It teaches us how the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would deal with people. It teaches us a lot on how we need to learn to deal with people.

The grandson of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمHussain. The grandson of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم Hussain, the son of Ali رضي الله عنه used to stutter when he talked. Hussain رضي الله عنه used to stutter when he spoke.

He had a stuttering problem. And he was a young boy. So, I mean, you know, imagine how frustrating that is for a young boy to stutter. Right? And other kids don't make it easy, do they? No, when he tries to say something like, they go, Right? They mock him, right? So they mock him. One of our buddies is laughing. Right? So, we mock that person.

We make fun of him. Right? So, it's not easy. And then on top of that, you know what makes it even that much more frustrating? Expectations.

Who's Hussain's older brother? Anybody know? Hassan. Hassan was Hussain's older brother. Hassan رضي الله عنه was a very eloquent person. Very well-spoken young man. Very articulate. Like a future khateeb, a future public speaker.

That's why when the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم saw him one time, he was giving khutbah, he picked him up and he said (إِنَّ ابْنِي هَذَا سَيِّدٌ - Bukhari hadith 2704). This son of mine is a leader. The Prophet صلی الله عليه وسلم said that. Because he's very articulate, well-spoken young man.

Like a young dynamic khateeb. And imagine being his younger brother and then stuttering when you talk. Imagine how frustrating that must have been. How demoralizing that would be. So the hadith says that when the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمhe would sit around playing with the grandkids a lot. So when he was sitting around, whenever Hussain would try to speak, and the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was there, and he would start stuttering a lot while he spoke, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would smile.

He just smiled. You know how soothing and calming it is? Somebody just nice, just big old, flashes you a nice big old smile. And this isn't just anyone, this is Rasul Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم. It's like the full moon.

His face was bright and illuminating and comforting, like sitting out looking at the full moon. And he would just smile. Just a nice big smile, yadhak.

And yadhak describes the smile of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم when he would actually open his mouth like you could see his teeth. Just big old smile he would give him. Just smile at him. To let him know that he loved it, he approved of it, he was proud of it, he just smiled at him. Not be like, this is what you're trying to say, come on, come on, come on, remember, come on. Get it out, come on, you can do it.

Not just coaching him all the time. Not just beating down on him all the time. Just smile at him. Just smile. And then what would he say? The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would then pat him on the back and the people that were around there, because it's kind of an embarrassing moment, right? When you're trying to just spit it out, you're trying to say it, you keep stuttering over yourself. And there's like eight people sitting there, it's like a dinner party, you're having a conversation, everyone's just kind of waiting for you to eventually get there, right? So it can be a little embarrassing.

So the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would just smile, would then pat him on the back, and then would say, he has inherited this. The stuttering, he has inherited this from his great, great, great uncle, Musa عليه السلام. He turned his negative into a positive. He turned his shortcoming into a source of pride for him.

He says it's inheritance. Inheritance itself is something good. And not just from anyone, but from Musa عليه السلام. Who is Musa عليه السلام? He's an amazing person. One of the greatest prophets. Forget

about greatest men, one of the greatest prophets. He would say he has inherited this from his great, great uncle, Musa عليه السلام. What now, huh? Say something now.

Right? That's who the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was. He would empathize with people. Empathize with people. He'd feel their pain. So I was talking about that story. So this man came from that city, accepted Islam, went back, came back right away, said they're not accepting Islam, maybe Allah destroys these people.

Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said, uh-uh, behave yourself. And he said, oh Allah, give guidance to these people. And then he sent him back and he said, now you go behave yourself.

You go do what you see me doing here with people. Empathize with them, be one of them, mix it up with them, be there for them. And then you have a message to share with them.

The sahabah رضي الله عنهم say that, we sought to fail after 20 years. In the year immediately before the passing of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in Medina. Which is almost 20 years after that moment.

You ever seen somebody after 20 years? It's like seeing somebody from another lifetime. It's like, oh, where you been? Right? Like you're taken aback from him, like wow, is that really you? They said we saw him after 20 years and he was walking into city of Medina. And the early sahabah were like, oh, it's Tufail.

Where you been homie? Right? They were like shocked to see him. Where you been? He thought you died. Right? And he said that, no, I'm here, I came to Medina. And then they said that we saw a bunch of people walking behind him. And we said, what's going on? He said, this is my entire tribe of ados and they have all come to become Muslim and accept Islam. That's the type of person Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is.

Another Example: The Battle and Mercy

He would invest time into people and he taught others to invest time. One time there was a battle going on and the Muslims were like getting killed in the battle. They came to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and they said, Oh Messenger of Allah, make dua that Allah destroys these people.

We're dying here. It was the battle of Hunayn. They said about the people of Thaqeef

They're expert archers, they're killing us

Make dua Allah destroys these people. The Prophet صلی الله عليه وسلم raised his hands and made the dua

Oh Allah give guidance to the people of Thaqeef. And then he turned to his companion and he said, I've had enough of this.

He said,

I was not sent to curse people, to damn people, to doom people.

(Muslim hadith 2599) I was sent as a mercy for people. Learn to be a mercy for people.

Practical Application: Being Mercy in Our Families

For the people, and that begins with the people nearest and dearest to you, the closest to you, in your own home, in your families. And I'm not gonna launch into the whole terrain, the whole detailed talk. Alright, but very briefly, learn to be a mercy for the people in your life.

Practice forgiveness and mercy with the people that are closest to you. We take for granted the people that are closest to us. We bury our closest people, whether it be your wife, or whether it be your husband, whether it be your sons and daughters, brothers and sisters.

We bury them, we suffocate them under the expectations we have of them. We hold them hostage, based on what we expect from them. We suffocate them, we strangle them. And that's what breaks down these relationships. Learn to practice mercy and forgiveness. Umar (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) was shocked.

His daughter Hafsa, that's why he's called Abu Hafs. His daughter Hafsa was one of the wives of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ). When he found out that when... Actually, the way the full story goes, because it's kind of an interesting story. He told his wife something.

Umar (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ) told his wife something at home, and his wife was like, uh-uh, I ain't doing that, that's not right. Or whatever, she disagreed with him. She's like, uh-uh, I'm not doing that.

And he was like, what? Right? And she goes, relax, calm down. She goes, who do you think you are? The Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) allows his wife to talk openly to him and disagree with him. He was like, what? So he goes to his daughter's house, he goes to Hafsa and he's like, what are you doing? You talk back to the messenger? He's like, no, I communicate with him.

And he wants us to, he allows us to. He's like, for real? He's like, yeah. Communication, talking.

Simple Sunnah: Saying Salam at Home

You know, a small simple sunnah that you can implement immediately. It's from the sunnah of the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) when you would go home, when you would enter into his home, he would say salam to all the family members of the home, all the house. He'd say salam to everybody in the home, in the house.

Does anyone say salam to women? Right? Say salam to women? You crazy? He'd say salam to all the family members of the house. I was talking about this earlier today. The Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) taught us etiquettes of saying salam.

He said, whoever enters into the room, should say salam to the people sitting in the room. The younger people should start the salam and should say salam first to people older than them. But at the same time, the sahaba say, even though he taught us these protocols, these etiquettes of who should say salam first, we could never beat the Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) to the punch.

We could never beat him to the punch. He was always the first one to say salam. The kids would walk up, as-salamu alaykum, how's it going kids? What's going on? Always the first one to say salam.

We'd walk into the room before we could say salam. As-salamu alaykum, how's it going? Everything's okay? He was always the first one to say salam. Etiquette, character, morals, ethics, empathy, mercy, forgiveness.

The Day of Judgment Perspective

This is the lesson. And I wanna tie it back to the ayah, because the last thing that we wanna have, when we show up on the day of judgment, what we hope, what we pray, what we make dua to Allah that we have waiting for us, is a long line of people, a huge crowd of people, that say, oh Allah, I accepted Islam, I came closer to you, I developed a relationship with the masjid, I started praying five times a day because of this guy.

Because this guy was amazing. Because he set an amazing example. He did something that touched my heart. And the thing that we don't want to look forward to, the thing that we don't want to have, is that we show up on the day of judgment, and there's a huge crowd of people, there's a long line of people, there's a long list of individuals.

And they say, oh Allah, I knew your religion was the truth. I swear I knew it was the truth. I heard the Quran and the second I heard it, I knew this was correct. But this guy right here, he was such a miserable human being, he was such a bad person, and he said he was a Muslim, he was the one telling me about Islam, he was the one handing me the Quran, that I thought that there's no way that this could be the truth, otherwise this guy wouldn't be such a horrible human being. We don't want that to happen.

Making an A'azam (Resolution)

And so going forward from here, it's the end of the night, we're nearing the end of the month of Ramadan, but we have enough of an opportunity to make an a'azam. There's a niyah, there's an irada, then there's an a'azam. A niyah is when you just decide something in your heart. An irada is when you state it with your tongue.

And an a'azam is when you actually take practical steps to implement it, to live it, to make it a reality. When you just thought to yourself, Qiyam sounds kind of interesting, you're just thinking to yourself. You see Qiyam on Facebook, you're like, I'll check it out, I'll think about it.

But then when you actually call your friend and say, where the heck is Mansfield Masjid? Where is Mansfield? Right? What is Mansfield? So it's like, when you actually talk to someone about it, like, are you going to be going to the Qiyam? I'm thinking about going to the Qiyam. It became an irada. But the second that you went on Google Maps, and you pulled up the directions, and you got the directions, or

you programmed your GPS, or when you got out of your house to leave for the Qiyam, it became an a'azam, it became a reality at that moment.

So make this an a'azam, right here. I will become a better person. And I mean that at the most basic tangible level. I will learn to talk to people better. I will act better. I will behave better. At the most basic level, I will become a better person. May Allah give us all the ability to practice everything that was said and heard.

Final Appeal and Community Support

I just had a small quick appeal. I know it's tragic. Everything in Ramadan is fundraising. I know you're tired of hearing of it. I'm not going to do fundraising. It's just a request, inshallah. We are, you know, this is a small community.

It's a small facility. We're still growing. We still have the growing pains, where you struggle to pay rent and things like that. But we're inshallah working through those things. If you'd like to contribute, at the same time we are doing these events, and we're trying to make this a place of value that presents good activities and quality activities and education to the community. So inshallah, if you'd like to donate something, you'd like to contribute something, just for your appreciation of what you benefited, what you learned from tonight, inshallah, what you gained from tonight.

Just feel free to inshallah stop by and drop something in the donations. The people that are watching online as well, there's just a little chip-in under the broadcast window, inshallah. You can also just drop a little something, whatever it is.

The Quran, you know, gives us the example of a single seed. Never underestimate what you can contribute. Because the Quran, in the Quran Allah says, you give a single seed, it multiplies by 700. A single seed becomes barrels and barrels. So never underestimate what you have to give, inshallah. Make whatever contribution you can.

You do it for your own akhira, you do it for your own good, you're investing into your own deed, inshallah. At the same time, wanted to request everyone to make dua for the community, for the masjid. Make dua for the volunteers.

You can see there's, you know, a lot of time, a lot of effort goes into making it possible, coordinating with all the speakers, making all this, especially the people watching online, there's 18,000 wires running around here. And it takes a lot of work, a lot of dedication to make it all happen. So make sure that you make dua for the volunteers who make this all possible and put in the time and the effort so we could just come and we could just benefit, inshallah.

Also, I didn't, again, mashallah, because you requested and I didn't want to break his heart. The young man here asked me to make dua. He said that his older brother is going to college tomorrow. And he's

moving away from home to college. And so he said to make dua for his brother that inshallah he'll be safe, he'll be okay, and he misses his brother. So may Allah keep him safe and keep him close to you guys, inshallah.

Closing Remarks

Jazakumullah khayran. We are going to end the night as it should be ended. And I want to make that last point because when I was making that announcement, I don't think the broadcast was running.

And alhamdulillah we have a couple of hundred people here but I think at last count we had over a thousand people online. So I want to state this for their benefit. And it's a reminder for all of us.

You know, we came here tonight, we sat here, we listened, we prayed, we did amazing things, alhamdulillah. But how do we make the distinction? How do we make the difference between... I did it because of Wissam Sharif, I did it because of brother Noman Ali Khan, and I did it because of brother Ghait's poetry and I just came to listen to these awesome speakers, between I did it for Allah. I did it because of Allah, I did it for Allah, I did it to please Allah.

The thing that will prove that, more than saying it, the thing that will establish that, will prove that to yourself, is tomorrow night when there's not a super duper qiyam to attend, not online, not in person, you're still going to take your musallah, you're still going to face the qiblah, and you're still going to pray. And it maybe be two rakaats, maybe it will be four rakaats, maybe it will be 5, 10, 15 minutes, that's it. And you're going to read Quran, and read a little bit of translation for 10 minutes, that's it.

But the fact that you do that, proves that you did it for Allah. Because that's the goal at the end of it, nothing else matters. It's all about Allah becoming closer to Allah.

Closing Dua

May Allah give us all the ability to practice everything we said and heard.