Abdul Rahman Chao - 7-11-25

The Three Knots of Shaitan

The Prophet ﷺ in an authentic narration, he talks about the little tricks that shaytan uses when a person goes to sleep. And so when a person goes to sleep, shaytan will come behind the person's head, and he will tie three knots. And as he ties each knot, shaytan will say over each knot:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1142)

You have a long night ahead of you, keep sleeping.

But when the person wakes up, if they remember Allah upon waking up, one of the knots is undone. And if they make wudu, another knot is undone. And if they pray, another knot is undone.

Now the Prophet ﷺ tells us, that if they don't do these things, they will wake up lazy and in a foul mood. But if they remember Allah, make wudu and pray, in this case fajr, they will wake up with a lot of energy. They will wake up full of vigor.

Now the scholars of Islam, they differed on the meaning of this hadith. Is this an actual, a physical knot that we are not aware of from the world of the unseen? And many scholars say it is. And some scholars say that it is metaphorical.

But it doesn't matter, because this is from the world of the unseen. What the Prophet ﷺ is trying to teach us, is that the tricks of shaitan can be easily undone. If you remember Allah, make wudu and you pray your fajr.

Some scholars even said that this doesn't only apply to fajr, but this also applies to qiyam al-layl. But what I want you to focus on is on the last part of the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ, where he says:

If they don't do these three things, they will wake up in a foul mood and lazy. I want to draw your attention to that last phrase, lazy.

The Connection Between Shaitan and Laziness

And so here the Prophet ﷺ draws a connection between shaitan using different cheap feeble means, to get people to be comfortable in their own zones, so that they don't remember Allah, so that they miss fajr, and that they don't do purification. And laziness, brothers and sisters, is one of the worst traits, because it can ruin entire marriages, it can ruin entire careers, it can ruin families, and it can ruin relationships. And more often than not, people will deflect when it comes to this topic of الكسل, of laziness.

They will say, when they're not successful, when they haven't tried enough, they'll say, someone gave me the evil eye. Someone is jealous of me. And it's like, that's not always true, you don't really have proof that someone was jealous of you, or someone gave you the evil eye.

It's very difficult to prove that, almost impossible. But if that's how you feel, then you go on feeling that way. Or some people instead of confronting this characteristic and being productive, they will just say, you know, shaitan made me do it.

You know, they'll take this hadith, and then they will twist it, you know, shaitan made me do it. And they don't want to take responsibility. And we live in a time now, where laziness is glorified.

Umar's Response to Excuses

During the time of Umar bin Khattab, he saw a man with a huge stomach. No, we're not talking about people who have thyroid issues, okay? We're talking about Umar just simply seeing this man with this huge gut. And he pointed at him, and he said, مَا هَذَا or مَا هَذِهِ And the man said, هَذَا بَرَكَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ This is from the blessings of Allah, justifying it.

And Umar bin Khattab says, لَا بَلْ عَذَابٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ It is a punishment from Allah. And now we're living in a time where we see on social media, people glorifying laziness. They're like, you know, you just need some time for yourself, you do you.

It's good to take a break from time to time, to recharge. There's nothing wrong with that. But if your recharge mode is for 30 years, that's not called recharge.

That's called laziness. Brothers and sisters, unfortunately, we also have to look at the reality of this word laziness, of how it is weaponized and used incorrectly. Where we see our society of people who are in positions of power, and money, and status, and they look down on immigrants, and they will say, they're just lazy.

Oh, you're just selfish. And it's not true. They like to go around and say the immigrants are lazy, and they're actually feeding off of the welfare system, which is statistically proven to be false.

But it is used as a weapon, right? Brothers and sisters, the scholars, they define laziness as someone having the ability to do it, but they choose not to do it. And for whatever reason it is, maybe because it is fear, maybe because it's procrastination, whatever you want to call it. Maybe it's a mental illness issue that they have.

But we are living in a time where mental illness and awareness, we know about it. You can seek help. So for someone to continue to be in that state, that rut that they are in for decades on, and say, well, you know, this is how it is.

You know, the problem is not just a mental health issue. They need to go seek help. And if they refuse to, then that is on them.

The Prophet's Refuge from Laziness

So much so that the Prophet ﷺ used to ask Allah for protection from laziness. Because it is a real mental condition. In which the Prophet ﷺ, he used to ask Allah, and say:

The Prophet ﷺ would not seek refuge in something that was a waste of time.

No, but he would seek refuge in things that were a direct threat to our iman and our well-being. He said, O Allah, I seek refuge in You from inability and laziness. And when the Quran talks about laziness, it is almost always in the context of the منافقين.

And I want you to reflect on that. The منافقين, the hypocrites, during the time of the Prophet ﷺ, a specific type of hypocrisy, and that was those who feigned belief on the outside, but they harbored disbelief on the inside. This is the نفاق that takes them out of the fold of Islam.

This is the نفاق in which Allah says:

That kind of hypocrisy, the hypocrisy of the belief, is the one that leads them to be in the furthest, most bottom part of hellfire. May Allah protect us. So what does Allah describe them as? That these hypocrites, that they try to deceive Allah, but Allah deceives them back.

I mean the jokes on them.

And then what does Allah say?

What's the first characteristic that Allah describes the hypocrites of Medina? He says, when they get up to pray, they are lazy. And they only get up so that people will see them and notice them, so they think, oh they're believers.

وَلَا يَذْكُرُونَ اللَّهَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا And they seldomly remember Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So why did Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala out of all the characteristics that He chooses to show us about the hypocrites of Medina, what did He choose? He chose to talk about their laziness for salah. Why? Because for them it's like keeping up with appearances, because they don't really believe in the inside.

So getting up to pray is like an extra chore, because they have to put on this show for people to see. So if a person is lazy in their salah, the likelihood of them being lazy in the other acts of ibadah is going to be high. Brothers and sisters, before we close for the second khutbah, I want to talk about how laziness, although we talk about it in the physical sense, I want to bring your attention, and especially because it's the summer.

Practical Applications for Parents

I want to bring your attention to a few things, especially if you are parents, especially if you have children. And that is, brothers and sisters, the Prophet ﷺ commands the parents to order their children to pray at the age of seven. And you may use force against them, not harsh force, but as a reminder when they hit ten.

So that means from seven to ten years old, there's a three years, you have 5,475 opportunities to tell your child to pray. Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha, Salli, Salli, it's time for salah, it's time for salah, it's time for salah. And if the parent was on top of that, telling their child for Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha, from age seven until age ten, it would have worked 5,000 times.

Why do you think the Prophet ﷺ tells us to do that? Because it is a proven method. Another thing for you all to think about, and I'm not saying this to shame anyone, but only for parents to reflect on. Laziness can be in the form of neglect, not prioritizing things in the right way.

Educational Priorities

On average, a child, from first grade until twelfth grade, they will take about 4,200 hours of math and science. 4,200 hours of math and science in the class. Okay? This doesn't include the extra time that they work, or extra classes they have to take, or math camp, Kumon, whatever it is.

And then they come around when they're 18, they're like, well, my kid doesn't want to be Muslim. Yes, because they spent 4,200 hours on math and science, alhamdulillah. But they get three hours of Islamic studies a week.

And most of these kids, they quit Islamic Sunday school by the time they're sixth grade or seventh grade. And then you want to ask me, why is my kid so disconnected from the deen? Because you put your priorities differently. Same thing with Salatul Jum'ah.

If your son is baligh and of an adult age, from 13 years old until 18 years old, and they are not praying Salatul Jum'ah, that is on average of almost 216 Jum'ahs missed. And I don't want to get into the politics of this, but there is a bill in the Texas representatives in the Senate. They're talking about, and I'm not saying that, oh, they don't have an evil intent or something, but we can take advantage of it.

They're saying that they're going to allow school districts to give students the chance, the opportunity, if they want, every day if they want to read the Bible, or, and I read the bill, another religious text, or they can dedicate a small time to Salat. If a school district allows that, your child has no excuse to not pray Dhuhr. And that's for you to follow up on.

This is not about, oh, you're enabling the Christianization of schools. No, it's about we use the system to benefit us. They're so proud of preaching their deen, and we are so scared of practicing our Islam.

أقول قولي هذا. أستغفر الله لي ولكم ولسائر المسلمين. فاستغفروا إنه هو الغفور الرحيم.

الحمد لله وصلاة والسلام على رسول الله وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين وبعد.

The Story of the Needy Man

A man came to the Prophet ﷺ, and he asked him for money. So the Prophet ﷺ said, do you not have anything in your house? So the man said, I do, I have some cloth, one of it I use to cover myself when I'm cold, and the other piece I put it on the ground, so that I eat, put food on it and I eat.

And I also have a wooden bowl that I drink water out of. So the Prophet ﷺ said, bring them to me. So he went home, he brought the pieces of cloth, he brought the wooden bowl.

And then the Prophet ﷺ in front of his Sahaba he said, who will purchase this wooden bowl for one dirham? It's not worth one dirham, but he's fundraising for him. A man said, I will Messenger of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ says, anyone willing to pay two coins, two silver coins? Another man said, Messenger of Allah, I will give two silver coins.

So the Prophet ﷺ takes the two coins, and he gives it to this man, he says, now take one of the coins and use it to feed your family, and use the other coin, and you're gonna go purchase an axe, just the blade itself. Because he couldn't afford the whole thing. So he brings back the axe head, and the Prophet ﷺ with his blessed hands fashioned out a handle for him.

And then the Prophet ﷺ he said, I don't wanna see you for the next two weeks, you're gonna go and you're gonna chop firewood, and you're gonna sell it. I don't wanna see you, not I don't ever wanna see you, but I want you to keep doing this, chopping wood and selling it, and come back to me in two weeks. In two weeks this man came back, this sahabi he came back, and he had sold worth ten silver coins.

And then the Prophet ﷺ he said, it is better for you, it is better for someone in a different narration, it is better for someone to chop firewood, and put it on their back, than for them to beg. So that is why brothers and sisters, what I'm speaking about today, is not about shaming anyone who's in a depressive state. But it's about here the Prophet ﷺ recognize, that this guy is in a rut, and he helped him.

So seeking help is important. Islam did not say you cannot reach out to mental health counselors. But if you have the means, and the money, and the ability to seek the help, and you still refuse to do so, then you are at fault.

Practical Solutions

And I always like to put things into context, for people who work in corporate like myself. And that is, you know when it's time for you to pray dhuhr, set a time on your calendar, a lot of your companies might have a meditation room, a wellness room, just go and do your salah. There's no reason for you to keep delaying it.

Go into the wellness room, make your wudu, if you're like, oh I don't like to wash my feet in the sink. Okay, before you come to work, make the wudu, and put your socks on, wipe over them, and there you go. Remove the excuses to prevent laziness.

إن الله وملائكته يصلون على النبي، يا أيها الذين آمنوا صلوا عليه وسلموا تسليما. اللهم صل على محمد وعلى آل محمد كما صليت على إبراهيم وعلى آل إبراهيم إنك حميد مجيد. وبارك على محمد وعلى آل محمد كما باركت على إبراهيم وعلى آل إبراهيم إنك حميد مجيد.

عباد الله. إن الله يأمر بالعدل والإحسان وإيتاء ذي القربى وينهى عن الفحشاء والمنكر والبغي. يعظكم لعلكم تذكرون. اذكروا الله العلي الكبير واشكروه على نعمه يزدكم. ولا ذكر الله أكبر. والله يعلم ما تصنعون وأقيموا الصلاة.