The University Life & the Muslim Life - Part 1

The University Life & the Muslim Life - Part 1 of 2

Opening Praise and Testimony

I begin by praising Allah, I praise Him when we seek His help, when we ask for His forgiveness, we seek refuge with Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil consequence of our evil actions. Whomsoever Allah guides, there is none to misguide. Whomsoever Allah leads to go astray, there is none to guide.

And I testify that Allah alone is worthy of worship and that Muhammad ﷺ is the servant of Allah and His final messenger.

The Lost Art of Islamic Etiquettes

The first thing, brothers, is that alhamdulillah, Islam, as inshallah we're going to find out in the course of the lecture, has prescribed manners, etiquettes for virtually every single occasion and every single thing that you can think about. Unfortunately, the etiquettes and the manners that the Muslim need to observe is something that has been lost.

It has been very much lost. Etiquettes actually are something beautiful. They adorn the individual and they adorn the family and they adorn the civilization and the people who practice them.

Indeed, we could know a people by their etiquettes and by their manners. And so Islam has given this, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has given this ummah etiquettes that are not some man-invented customs or some products of conflict between classes.

The Origin of Western Etiquettes vs Islamic Etiquettes

For example, the actual word etiquettes in English derives from a system of behavior that was invented by the aristocracy in order to increase the gap between the aristocracy and the ordinary poor common people.

And also not only between the aristocracy but the next level, those who aspire to be amongst the aristocracy.

And they will always change the rules of the etiquettes in order to humiliate these people who are venturing to try and reach the upper stages of society. So that actually the purpose of it was to expose them and to keep them busy with these things.

But alhamdulillah the etiquettes of Islam, they have the opposite. The purpose of the etiquettes of Islam is to bring the hearts of the Muslims together. Is to unite the Muslims and really in terms to make them display the good behavior and to encourage them indeed in righteous behavior and obedience to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

The Etiquette of Sitting Together

So although the brother said please move close, let us actually talk about, before we even begin the talk, the

etiquettes of sitting in a gathering. One day the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he was on jihad and his companions made camp. One over here, one over there, all over the valley.

They were spread out all over the valley. And the Prophet did not like this. He said to them, your spreading out is from shaitan. Your spreading out is from shaitan. That was enough. Then they used to come together and sit together so much and so close that if they got a cloth they could have spread it over their heads.

So therefore the manners of sitting in a gathering, especially a gathering of knowledge is to come very close together, to sit all together. So let us do that. Because this is a way that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala brings the hearts together.

Okay, this is part of our etiquettes. One of the beautiful things my brothers in Islam, even come with us, we will even close the tripod up. Even come.

There is a big gap there. You don't want to have a gap. What is this? She has suddenly divided.

Wahhabi, Sufi, I don't know. What is that? So come on. Yes.

The Connection Between Inner and Outer Reality

Alhamdulillah. Because one of the things about our deen my brothers is this, is that what is inside reflects itself on the outside. And what is on the outside also reflects itself on the inside.

And this is actually a reality. This is a secret that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has manifested in our deen. You know many religions or many people somehow imagine that you can hold something on the inside.

Some belief or some conviction. That does not necessarily let itself show on the outside. However that is not true.

What you believe in, what your heart contains is going to manifest itself on your lips. If you truly believe in Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, you will do the actions of a person who truly believes in Allah. If our sisters are modest in their hearts, they will be modest in their dress.

The two things come together. Okay? It is natural. If the Muslims sit close together, then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala brings their hearts together.

This is the nature. This is why we have been told to stand in the lines in the saqf of the surah, shoulder to shoulder, feet to feet. This is to bring and so the shaitan will not come between us.

Make yourself straight and Allah will make your hearts straight. This is the connection between the outward physical and the inward spiritual. Yes, it is only a form you could say of washing yourself outwardly.

But it is supposed to have an effect inwardly as well. And you see this is Islam. It is like this in Islam.

Anyway, without really meaning to, I have already introduced the topic of... You know what? I did some of this stuff when I was speaking in lectures and stuff like that. I don't think it works so well anymore. I think people these days lack a bit of interaction.

But anyway, we will see how it goes.

The Battle for Hearts and Minds

The university way of life, the Muslim way of life, my brothers, it is not going to be a secret to you. Even if you are just arrived here, it is not a secret to you.

I am thinking about this battle that is going to take place in Fallujah. Bush is waiting now to get re-elected.

Hopefully, yes or no.

Is it good or bad? I don't know. Some people seem to think differently. They think he is such an idiot.

The best thing that ever happened to the Muslims was George Bush getting elected. What has he really done? Maybe more people are angry. I am thinking about this upcoming battle.

It is going to be fierce. I was thinking about you, brothers, here. I was just walking from the main entrance over here.

I was thinking about you, brothers. What you are involved in is a battle. It is not a physical battle.

It is not a war. It is not RPGs or machine guns. In a way, the battle you are fighting is much more dangerous.

If you are in Fallujah and you are fighting and you die, Inshallah, we hope that you are not the brothers fighting for Allah's sake.

But if you die in this battle, brothers, that is it. You are not going to die as sheikhs.

You are going to die in the habit of helping. Because this is a battle over the hearts. This is a battle over your minds.

This is a battle over your desires. And the weapons here are not guns. They are not guns and tanks.

They are ideas that come into our minds and our hearts. They are the temptations of women. The temptation of desires.

The temptation to abandon our being, not only in our actions, but even really in our attitudes. And this is a very hard battle.

Maybe this is harder in some ways than even the physical fight.

The Modern University Culture

And really, this is what it is about. Because when you look at these universities where your brothers are, and really in reality, you find that what you are being invited to, what you are being invited to, is almost a polar contradiction to what Allah is inviting you to. And I don't just mean here, you know, the invitation to drink alcohol, to have girlfriends, to go to the discos, to enjoy your life as they call it, enjoy your life.

But even the whole ethic, what is the whole orientation of universities now, becoming increasingly more and more. The fact that now you have to pay fees. The fact that most people need to take loans in order to afford these fees.

The fact that you are going... What it means is that university is no longer like it used to be. A place where not only are you trying to get a degree, but also the whole aspect of involving yourself in extracurricular activities, and serious ones, you know, like political debates and getting involved in various societies. You know, I mean, these type of things that used to be part and parcel of what was important about university education is becoming more and more difficult, even if you want to benefit from those things.

The whole pressure on you in order to pass your exams, the whole pressure on you in order to succeed academically and immediately and achieve results is increased. What sort of attitude as well does that create in the hearts and minds of students? In other words, there now becomes... And I actually think that this is something that is done on purpose. I think that it is on purpose that they want to give people less time to actually think and to get involved and to really consider different aspects and different ways of looking at the world.

To look at radical, non-conformist ideas and philosophies. I actually believe that what is taking place is all part of the plan in order to disengage people from those things, to make you conform even more to the principles of what type of society? A consumer society, a society run by corporations, a society whose concern is the bottom line, profit. And this is increasingly more and more what is taking place in our society and in the world as a whole.

The Corporate Control of Society

We have a society that is more and more controlled by, more and more influenced by big business.

Multinational corporations whose mandates, who are legally obliged by law to consider only shareholders' profits. Multinational corporations by law are not allowed to care about environment.

By law, they are not allowed to care about charitable work. By law, they are not even allowed to care about their workers, about anything. By law, their mandate is one single thing.

How much money can we make? Ironically... I don't know. Keep sitting there, young boys, old men like me. By law, brothers, these multinational corporations, they have to care about how much profit they make.

If they care about the environment, and if they care about their workers, and if they care about charity, it can only be in so much as it helps them to make more money. That's all it is. When you see BP and Shell and all these people advertising and talking about how they care about the environment, what a load of rubbish.

They don't care about the environment. They only care about the environment in so much as their profits are affected. And their profits can be affected.

By what? By people who refuse to deal with them. By people who will refuse to purchase their products because of the damage that they do to the environment, or whatever it may be. Or because they exploit people in sweatshirts, like Nike and Adidas and all the rest of it.

Like these labels that we're so fond of wearing. And it is this corporate culture that is beginning to overtake the whole of society.

The Message of Consumer Culture

When I say beginning anyway, what is the whole ethic of western society? What is their life based upon? What is the message that this society conveys to us? The message is very simple.

It is a message that tells us that the way to have happiness and joy in life is by consuming, is by buying, by purchasing products. Have this and have that. Buy this and buy that.

Buy this thing and you will be happy. Buy this new phone. You know what's missing in your life? Your Motorola X125Z.

Although you've got the X125, you haven't got the X125Z. And the X125Z has got these three additional features, life enhancing features they call them. Alright? And you know you will not be happy until you get the X125Z.

And it breathes within you this malcontents, this desire to consume, this idea that by buying this thing, by having this product, by dressing in these clothes, by drinking this drink, your life will be beautiful, your life will be happy.

The Deception of Advertising

We only need to observe. I'm sure you watch TV.

If you don't, Alhamdulillah, but I'm sure you do anyway. Look at the adverts. Look at them.

What are they actually selling you? Are they only selling you a product or are they also selling you a lifestyle? A whole way of looking at the world. So this is the image that is created in our minds. The image that is created in our minds is if we drink Coca-Cola, we will be like those beautiful white, I mean they're brown, but they're not brown like you guys.

The Real Meaning of "The Great Satan"

So what is it? You see, what are we taken in by? Our Muslim brothers and sisters.

What is it that is so attractive about this lifestyle? What is it that makes it so appealing to us? What is it that makes it so hard to resist? You know, when some people call America the great Satan, you know, really in reality this has got nothing to do with them supporting, well, not nothing, but it's not about supporting Israel or invading Kabbalah or something to do with that. It's about a whole way of life that is built upon materialism and satisfying or seeking to satisfy people's basic instincts. And that is their way of life, my brothers and sisters.

That is what it's all about. And these universities have become universities for that. To train people to become like that.

To make you part of the system. Just like school is making you part of the system.

The Illusion of Rebellion

And even when you rebel, you know, they want to make sure that, you know, because they recognize people like to be rebellious, but, you know, the way to be rebellious is, even they have a sort of accepted way of being rebellious that fits into the system.

What is it? Smoke a bit of weed? Go across some dreadlocks, yeah? Maybe if you're black, listen to some black rap music, gangster stuff, yeah? Put a baseball cap the wrong way round and look like a gangster, you know? That's like rebelling. But even that, rebelling is totally within the framework of what's acceptable to them.

Because you are still totally confined to their materialistic philosophy.

What does a gangster want? What does a gangster want? Money! Power! Gold! Bling! Bling! Well, they call it bling, isn't it? That's it! Bling! Nice car! But the gangster, of course, hasn't got the brains, or couldn't be bothered to get it through working, so he gets it through stealing, through selling drugs. But you know what? He's still part of the system. He's still part of the mentality.

He's still a propagator for their religion. So that's what he's doing. He's still preaching their religion.

He hasn't left their deen. He hasn't become a murtad, apostatized gnoll. He's still within their religious framework of their god that they worship, their god of consumerism, their god of money, their god of, well, whatever it is, materialism.

Understanding What Makes Something a God

And that's the way of life. So, brothers, let's not actually, let's be quite honest. This is a deen of theirs.

It is a religion. To have their own morals, their own etiquettes. Because, you know, when you think about it, what is your god?

What is a god? What makes something a god? So let's participate in that, brothers.

Right? What is a god? Let's think. Let's think about, I mean, because you know what? I don't think a lot of us really think about what religion is and stuff like that. So let's think really deeply about it.

What is a god? What makes something a god? I don't mean what makes something the creator of the heavens and the earth.

But a god, like an idol, or anything that people worship, what makes it a god? Who can tell me? Something you aim towards.

Something you aim towards to achieve it.

Like an achievement. Well, okay, what I want to, okay, think of it this way. Why do people worship things? Why? Come on, guys.

Why do you worship Allah, yeah? Why do you pray? Why do you worship? Why do you call upon Allah? Why? Huh? Thank Him.

Okay, you thank Him. You think you can get what you want? Okay, that's not what I'm looking for.

You think you can get what you want? Huh? You want something. Okay, that's what I'm driving at. Not that what you said is wrong.

It's not wrong. Alhamdulillah, I know what you said is wrong. But what I'm trying to get at is this.

What is the, what's at the base of it? I mean, why? Yeah, we thank Allah, but why do we thank Allah? That's what I'm trying to get at. Why? I'm, okay, let's not, oh, I'm just thinking about anyone who worships a god. So, someone who worships Ganesh, or someone who worships Krishna, or someone who worships Jesus, or, you know, I don't know, like the ancient Greeks, and the ancient Egyptians used to worship different gods.

What did they think they were getting by worshiping those things?

The Purpose of Worship

So, the brother here, right? They think that by worshiping this thing, they are going to get what they want. If I pray to Ganesh, I believe that good luck is going to come to my life. Yeah? If I worship, usually the god of war, if I want to fight a battle, I'll go and worship the god of war.

If I want to have a male child, I'll probably worship, I don't know what it is, a lingam, whatever it is, a big phallic symbol, okay? I don't know, but you worship the fertility god, right? I mean, in other words, what you want, you worship the god, and the god, you think, or you imagine that by worshiping this thing, you're going to get what you need and get what you want. Okay? That's what people imagine. That's what makes something a god, and that's why people worship it.

Actually, think about that deeply now. Think about it really deeply, and then think about yourself, or think about others. What do you think is going to give you what you need and what you want? Think about what you really believe is going to make you happy in life.

What is going to make you happy? What do you really believe is going to give you what you need and what you want?

True Belief in Allah

Now, for a Muslim, we believe, we should believe that it is Allah. Allah is the one, by worshiping Him, that we're going to get what we need and what we want. That Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is really the controller of the universe.

He is the source of our success. But how many people, how many people really believe that? This is the question. We say we believe that.

We say we believe in Allah, but in reality, is that the truth? Because look at us as Muslims. Do we really believe that Allah is the source of our happiness and success, or do we think it's something else? Do we think it's money, or looking a certain way, or being a certain way, or having a certain type of car, or a certain type of phone, or having a certain type of girlfriend, or whatever? No, in reality, you see, my brothers, really, when we look at it, most Muslims, they say they're Muslim. But if we really see, deep down inside, who is our faith, what is our faith in, what is our trust in, what are our aspirations for?

The Single Purpose of This World

For a Muslim, the dunya has only one purpose. The world for a Muslim has one purpose. Only one purpose. To help us worship Allah.

That is it. Everything else in this dunya, that does not help us to worship Allah, has no benefit. That's it.

If it doesn't help you to learn the deen of Islam, or be a student of knowledge, or to make remembrance of Allah, or to worship Him, if it doesn't help you to do one of those things, if it's either, it has to be one of those things, because, for example, prayer is from this dunya. There's no prayer in paradise. Prayer is something from the dunya.

The Salah. So, either you are worshiping Allah, that's not something from the dunya, or it's going to help you to worship Allah.

Otherwise, the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam said, the world and everything in it is cursed. Except the scholar, the student of knowledge, the remembrance of Allah, and what helps you to do that. This is the reality. And this reality is rooted in tawhid, my brothers.

The Foundation of Tawhid

It's rooted, my sisters, in our belief in Allah. And so many Muslims have this misunderstanding They think that believing in Allah means that I just believe Allah exists. That there is a creator who created this universe.

And, you know, that's it. That's why so many of Muslims are ready to accept this nonsense that I heard being propagated that Jews and Christians are our brothers in faith. Our brothers in faith.

They are not. They are kuffar. They are mushrikeen.

The Christians are mushriks. They are people who make shirk with Allah. They are not people of iman.

They do not believe in Allah. They believe in the creator, but they do not have iman in Allah. They don't.

They are people who make shirk with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. They make partners and rivals with Allah.

Belief of the Pagan Arabs

So the issue of Islam, even when the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam, even the pagan Arabs, they believed in Allah.

You know the pagan Arabs believed in Allah? The Qur'an, it says:

Say to them, O Muhammad, who is the lord of the seven heavens? Who is the lord of the glorious throne?

They will say, it's Allah. (Quran 23:86-87)

They believed in Allah. They believed Allah sent down the rain. They believed Allah caused the crops to grow. They believed Allah caused the living to die or bring the dead back to life. They believed that about Allah.

But what did they do wrong? They worshipped something else.

The Different Forms of Worship

And this worship, as the Prophet ﷺ told, it's not confined even in the Qur'an. It's not confined to worshipping idols or worshipping saints as the Christians do or worshipping at the graves of dead people.

Some other people do. These are obviously forms of shirk, of worshipping idols. But worship could be something else.

You could worship your desires. This is why Allah mentioned it in the Qur'an. In the meaning, haven't you seen the one who takes their desires as their god? And this is why I tried to get from you.

What is a god? What is a god? A god is the thing that you believe is going to give you what you want. So you can take your desires as a god.

Worshipping Money

Yes? Woe be to the worshipper of the dinar and the dirham. That's like money that was used at the time. How do you worship the dinar and dirham? What, that they used to put it on the table and pray to it? Sacrifice to it? Is that what that hadith means? No. They worship money.

How do you worship money? Exactly. You worship money when you think that money is the source of success. And you don't care how you get it.

When you have money, you're happy. When you don't, you're sad. You think that money is what is going to make you happy in life? Then it's your god.

The Islamic Way of Life vs The University Way

So really, brothers, the Islamic way of life, the Muslim way of life, as opposed to this way of life in the university, and what we are, what we believe, and what we should be propagating and teaching to others, with more vigor and more intensity than what these people are doing with their prophethood, is we believe that happiness comes from living our life according to the way that Allah wants, by worshipping our Creator, by believing and knowing the fact that happiness comes from Him, that all the things and all the success in our life comes from worshipping Allah.

A Story of an Anglican Bishop

Brothers, I just came from Kenya. This is yesterday morning.

And on Sunday, this Sunday that just passed, at the end of my trip, I met a man who had converted to Islam. I was not an ordinary man. This guy was an Anglican bishop.