Ismail ibn Musa Menk Jewels From The Holy Quran [Episode 1 of 27]

Jewels From The Holy Quran - Episode 1 of 27

By Mufti Ismail Ibn Musa Menk

Opening

Introduction to the Series

Allah commences the Quran with Surat Al-Fatihah. This Quran has been revealed to Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in a different order. But it was in the Lawh al-Mahfuz and the Preserved Tablet in a specific order and that is the order that we have today.

Allah starts off with the most beautiful verses one can ever dream of. All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him on every condition.

He is the Creator. He's the one who made us. He's the one who made everything around us.

We praise Him, we thank Him. When goodness comes to us, we thank Allah. When something really terrible evil befalls us, we seek the protection of Allah.

That is the praise:

May Allah grant us complete and total protection at all times.

Understanding Allah's Mercy

Then Allah speaks about His mercy:

Most Beneficent, Most Forgiving, Most Merciful because myself and yourselves, we need to understand the mercy of Allah. That is what will bring us even closer and closer to Allah. We all know that this iman:

Iman is a balance between the fear of Allah and the hope in the mercy of Allah.

Wallahi, I guarantee you that this is the month of mercy. Let us all turn to Allah and seek His forgiveness. For indeed, He is forgiving wholesale in the month of Ramadan.

A loser is the one who has passed the month of Ramadan and has not been forgiven:

(Sunan at-Tirmidhi, Hadith 3545)

Woe be upon the one who has witnessed the month of Ramadan and he has not been forgiven. It is as though Allah is saying, Look, I am ready to forgive everybody.

But it is us who sometime don't want that. May Allah grant us in this month of Ramadan a turning point. Every one of us needs to make an intention tonight.

That this Ramadan will be a Ramadan with a difference. A Ramadan whereby we will make sure that we struggle to earn the pleasure of Allah.

The Opening Verses of Surah Al-Fatihah

He says regarding the book in the next surah. In Surah Al-Baqarah and obviously I am not going through every single verse because we don't have the time to do that. I have just selected certain verses.

Obviously it is very difficult to select verses because every single verse is of great importance.

But here we have Surah Al-Fatihah, the opening surah. I have mentioned the fact of the mercy of Allah. In fact one very interesting point before I go to Surah Al-Baqarah.

Allah speaks to us in a Hadith known as Hadith Qudsi. Where Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) says Allah tells us:

Hadith Qudsi

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 395)

I have split Surah Al-Fatihah between Myself and My worshipper into two halves. So when the worshipper says:

Lord of the worlds. I say meaning I respond to him. My worshipper has praised me. So every time we say

we should know that that Rabbul Alameen is responding that.

He loves it when we say that. We should increase that particular statement and all these statements of the adhkar and the remembrance of Allah.

Then if a worshipper says:

Allah says: My worshipper has glorified me.

And when he says:

He says Allah responds: My worshipper has exalted me. And then when he says:

You alone we worship and You alone we seek help from. Then Allah says: That is between me and my worshipper and for my worshipper is whatever he asks thereafter.

The first dua we make in the Quran:

Guide us to the straight path. May Allah soften our hearts. And may Allah make us all on the straight path. And may He keep us on that straight path.

Surah Al-Baqarah: The Authenticity of the Quran

Then let me move on to Surat Al-Baqarah. Allah in the opening verses of Surat Al-Baqarah speaks of the authenticity of this Quran.

Why? Because as soon as you open that Quran the first thing one needs to be convinced about is the authenticity of that book. When you open the previous scriptures that we find today automatically we find differences and discrepancies in the scriptures. So the authenticity is questioned and that automatically drops the value of the book.

When it comes to the Quran Allah says:

There is no doubt in that book. No doubt there is guidance in it for those who believe. Let us be from among those who believe. And let us not just pay lip service to that because Allah describes several categories of people.

The first are those who believe. As He says if you believe in Allah then the Quran will be a form of guidance for you. But if you do not believe in Allah that Quran will not even touch your hearts.

The Hardening of Hearts

Allah speaks in the same surah:

Allah speaks of some of the hearts and He says some of the hearts become so solid that they don't tremble and tremor with the fear of Allah no matter what you utter to certain hearts it doesn't tickle the hearts because those hearts have become hard. Allah says they are harder than rock. Some rocks they will explode and some rocks you will find that water will gush out of them but some of the hearts are even harder than that.

May Allah soften our hearts. Every single one of us needs to ask himself or herself the question: Am I from amongst those whose hearts have been hardened? Because if our hearts have been hardened then we are wasting our time reading the Quran. We are wasting our time when Allah tells us something and we deny it or we don't want it or we don't like it then obviously we need to first deal with our own iman.

Categories of People

Allah speaks of the Mu'mineen and He says those are the ones who will achieve goodness and guidance from the Quran. Then Allah speaks of the Kuffar... The Kuffar are those whom whether you warn them or you don't warn them it's all the same for them. May Allah not make us that.

Who are the Kuffar? Two types of Kuffar:

1. One are disbelievers from amongst those who do not even claim to be Mu'mineen and Muslimeen and submitters and believers
2. The other those who might be believers but they are so ungrateful

A person who has no form of gratitude in him for his own Creator is also known as a Kafir because Allah speaks about it in the Quran. He uses the term Kuffar for the one who does not acknowledge the gifts of Allah.

It's not enough to just say I thank you O Allah by tongue. Yes, that is part and parcel of it but what is much more important is that we utter the words and over and above that we practice upon what Allah wants us to practice upon.

And obviously not all of us can become pious overnight so to speak. Not all of us can become so pious and holy overnight but each one of us needs to ask ourselves: Am I heading in the right direction at least? Am I moving on the right path? I might be five steps up the ladder which has a hundred steps on it. If I've moved to six by the end of Ramadan I've achieved a lot. If I've moved to seven and ten and forty and fifty I've achieved a large amount. May Allah grant that to us.

But if I've gone down the ladder and back to the ground then we have lost. May Allah not make us from amongst those.

The Hypocrites

Then Allah speaks of the hypocrites and He speaks of those whom with their tongues they utter the words that you know, we believe, we are there, we are Mu'mineen but inside they are not believers. And sometimes people utter by tongue but they do not practice.

So there are two types of that Nifaq:

1. Nifaq l'tiqadi - Where a person is not a Muslim but he pretends or she pretends that he or she is a Muslim. That inshallah we ask Allah to protect us from that. That is very dangerous.
2. Nifaq Amali - The type where we all tend to fall. We say we are Mu'mineen but when the law and the command of Allah comes to us we then think we have a choice in that regard.

"No Salah, I'll see about it. I'm not yet ready to read it." Allah protect us from those type of statements. We should acknowledge what's right and wrong. If we are weak we can tell Allah: "Ya Allah, I acknowledge that what I'm doing is not right but at the same time Ya Allah make me strong so that I can continue." May Allah grant that to us.

So Allah says:

Among the people there are some who say we have believed in Allah and in the Last Day but yet they do not believe. They feel that they are cheating Allah and they are cheating the believers but they are cheating none other than themselves. May Allah protect us.

So we must realize we need to choose: Are we believers, are we Kuffar or are we in between the hypocrites? And in fact Allah says in another place in the Quran regarding the hypocrites:

The hypocrites are in the lowest of the fire and we know the fire the hottest is at the lowest point. May Allah protect us from the fire.

The Choice Between Guidance and Misguidance

Then Allah speaks about such people and He says do you know what they have done? They have bought misguidance and paid for it guidance. They have bought and Allah says it again in another place in the same surah and we read the verses tonight:

Quranic Verse

And:

Quranic Verse

There are people who have purchased the pleasures of this dunya and paid for it as a payment the whole of the Akhira. May Allah not do that to us.

Let me give you one example to bring it closer to our brains and minds. If a person has a house in Cape Town here and he happens to be walking from say Strand or somewhere and he is walking on a hot hot day. No one is giving him a lift. How long is it if you walk? One or two hours possibly three or four hours. But if you were to move by motor vehicle it would be half an hour.

So you are asking for a lift and no one is there to give you a lift. One man stops. It's very very hot. You don't have food. You don't have anything and one man says: I will give you a lift but sign me your title deeds for your house in Cape Town.

One would be foolish to sign his house. You'd say I'd rather walk. Why? Because you know that I'm making a payment far more expensive, far more valuable than what I'm getting in return.

What we do every day: We signing the title deeds of our houses in Cape Town but we don't realize we're doing it. How do we do it? Because Allah has kept the Akhira which is large and massive and we cannot describe it. We don't - we cannot speak about its value. But every day we commit haram. We do that which displeases Allah. By doing that we signing away the rooms that Allah is preparing for us in the Akhira just like the other example I've given.

Think about it tonight. May we not be from amongst those. When it comes to walking and signing a house of the dunya it's very simple to comprehend but when it comes to the Akhira we need to think and think a lot.

The Spiritually Deaf, Dumb and Blind

Then Allah says you know people who have hard hearts, people who are Munafiqeen, people who are

hypocrites. Allah says:

Quranic Verse

They are deaf, dumb and blind so they cannot return.

Deaf to what? Deaf to anything that is good. Anything that is bad they are all ears. You tell them something bad they will listen to you. They are deaf. They are dumb. Dumb for what? They will not utter anything good. They can speak but only bad. And they are blinded. Allah says they do not see a thing that is good. They can only see bad.

May Allah grant us understanding. When we see haram, when we see the night clubs, when we see places where there are women who are dressed in a haram way, our eyes turn very fast. But when we see the masjid, how many of us are guilty of not allowing our eyes to turn there and reading the dua? May Allah grant us the acceptance to enter the houses of Allah and to achieve the coolness of our eyes.

The minute we see a minaret and a minbar, one of these long towers that we all know, the minaret, the minute we see it our eyes should be cooled. Then inshallah we will be from amongst those who will be successful in the dunya and the Akhira.

The Challenge of the Quran

Allah says if you are in doubt with the authenticity of this particular book come forth with one surah. Let's see. The Kuffar tried it and we all know that they failed dismally. May Allah protect us. So there again Allah is speaking of the authenticity of that particular book or the Quran.

And Allah says if you are unable to do that then be careful and be warned of a grievous punishment:

Quranic Verse

If you are not going to do that, if you are unable to come up with a verse or with a surah of the Quran similar to it and you will never be able to do that, then Allah says be conscious of the fire. Why be conscious of the fire? The fuel of that fire shall be rocks and mankind.

Imagine rock. If you try to burn a rock you won't be able to do that unless there is a furnace which is burning at a very very high temperature. May Allah protect us.

But now when everyone hears about the fire, one of the secrets of the mercy of Allah is that immediately after that He speaks about His mercy. He says:

Quranic Verse

Give good tidings to those who believe and do good deeds. They will not be from amongst those who will be burning in the fire. They will be from amongst those who will be in cool gardens. Those gardens will have whatever their eyes would like, whatever their hearts would like, their minds would like.

May Allah make us all from amongst them.

The Story of Adam and the Enemy

And Allah thereafter speaks of our enemy, the enemy who makes us go astray - Shaytan and Iblis. Allah speaks of the history of it and I am sure we are all aware of that history. We all know how Adam alayhi salaam was tricked into eating from a certain fruit. May Allah protect us all.

And Allah mentions this in the opening surahs. Why? Because He wants us to know from the very beginning that look there is an enemy. Don't ever please that enemy of yours. Don't worship the enemy.

Isn't it Iblis promised Allah that: "Ya Allah I am definitely going to lead all these people astray and I am going to show you. I am going to show you that they will worship me and not you."

And Allah said: "Anyone who follows you from amongst them will also have the same fate as you. They will all be cast in hellfire." Allah says: "Accept those who turn to me."

So we need to turn to Allah. One of the secrets Allah says: "O My worshippers don't ever lose hope in My mercy no matter what you have done."

That means anyone who loses hope in the mercy of Allah has automatically worshipped Shaytan because Shaytan is the one who makes us lose hope in the mercy of Allah.

This is the month of the turning to Allah. May Allah grant it to me and you. May Allah soften our hearts. Remember the month is still long ahead but before we know it we will be in our closing session if Allah gives us the life to see that. May Allah make that easy for us.

Lessons from Banu Israel

So Allah after that speaks about Banu Israel, Banu Israel the children of Ya'qub alayhi salaam. Allah makes mention of them. Why? Because they were given so many gifts from Allah but a lot of them were ungrateful and Allah speaks about what the outcome was after their ungratefulness. And Allah mentions that because He doesn't want us to be like that.

You know Allah speaks about when Musa alayhi salaam told them to slaughter a cow they should have just listened. They know the Nabi was there and the Nabi told them slaughter the cow. What would

happen if Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam stood in front of us today and said everyone stop eating interest? What would we do? Would we be like Banu Israel arguing with that Nabi?

"Musa alayhi salaam, no it can't be haram. There must be something wrong with it. It can't. Today it's something else. It's unavoidable. We can't do that."

That is what Banu Israel did and they were cursed as a result. They told Musa alayhi salaam: "What type of a cow? Come on there's lots and lots of cows" and so on and they went on and on and the story is there in Surah Al-Baqarah.

And Allah says for that reason their hearts became hard because they argued with those who came with the correct information to them, with the commands of their Creator to them.

Let us all ask ourselves: Do we debate and argue with those who come to us with the truth, with the haqq? If we debate and argue with those who come to us with haqq then surely wouldn't we then fall into the bracket of those who debated with the Anbiya alayhi salaam?

So let's not do that. If we are weak we can say: "Look I'm weak. I'm not yet capable or I don't yet have the strength but I know I'm wrong." Admit it but don't argue and don't justify evil that I am engaged in or you are engaged in. May Allah safeguard all of us.

The Dua of Ibrahim

Then Allah speaks about the dua of Ibrahim alayhi salaam and it's very important that we realize that Ibrahim alayhi salaam, he worshipped Allah and Allah tested him so much. And after he completed building the Ka'bah he raised his hands and the duas I mentioned we read them tonight. He says:

Quranic Verse

O Allah, accept it from us. So every time we engage in an act of worship ask Allah's acceptance because sometimes Shaytan creeps in and he makes us want to do something to show off. May Allah protect us all.

Sometimes Shaytan creeps in and he makes us feel that we are better than everybody else. We better watch that. So because of that we need to do things for the sake of Allah and over and above that ask Allah to accept it.

Then he says: O Allah, not only me but what about my offspring?

Quranic Verse

O Allah, make myself and Ismail alayhi salaam, my son, make us submitters unto you. But not just us. O Allah from my offspring, my progeny keep a complete nation submitters unto you at all times.

Allah answers that dua and Allah says: "Ya Ibrahim, every Nabi that will come after you shall definitely be from your progeny." And that's what happened.

May Allah make us long sighted. Don't only make dua for yourself and your own children. Ya Allah 7 generations, 10 generations, 20 generations down, Ya Allah keep our progeny on deen, Ya Allah to the degree that when Isa alayhi salaam comes let members of our families be from amongst those who will fight together with him against the Dajjal.

Have our minds ever gone as far as that? If not here is the dua of Ibrahim alayhi salaam which is really really very deep. May Allah grant us also foresight.

Magic and Witchcraft

Then Allah speaks about magic and Allah speaks about Suleiman alayhi salaam. One verse:

Quranic Verse

Suleiman alayhi salaam did not become a disbeliever because he didn't teach people magic and he didn't become a kafir. But Shaitan disbelieved by teaching people sihr and magic.

This is the verse which takes a person who's engaging in witchcraft and the person who teaches it and learns it. It takes them out of the fold of Islam. May Allah safeguard us.

But worse than that is to accuse innocent women of being witches. That is worse. And innocent men of being of engaging in that particular act which we have absolutely nothing to substantiate. That is even worse.

Zina is a crime but worse than zina is to accuse innocent people of that act. May Allah grant us the ability to zip our mouths and rather make dua than to accuse innocent people because we suddenly and automatically become even worse than them.

Tests and Trials

And finally Allah in fact two issues. Allah speaks about the fact that He is going to test every single one of us. I need to die or those closest to me need to die before me. One of us somewhere somehow needs to die. Allah is going to test us with the death of those who are closest to us.

And Allah will test us with hunger. Allah will test us with lack of the sense of security. Allah will test us with drought and so on. He promises and He guarantees not because He wants to punish us but because He

Quranic Verse

O you who believe seek assistance through patience, forbearance and through Salah. Salah is the founding pillar of deen and inshallah in the next few days when the verses when more verses are repeated about Salah we will enter some of the issues regarding Salah.

Halal and Haram

Allah caps by telling us about halal and haram. Be careful. Watch out what you eat. Watch what goes into your mouth. Watch your earnings. Make sure they are halal.

Do you know that if I put in a morsel of haram in my mouth whether it is haram because it has not been slaughtered properly or whether it is haram because it was earned through haram means, the first thing that curses me: my teeth, then my tongue, then my throat, then the esophagus going down, the small colon, the big colon right to the back until it comes out. Everything is cursing me: "Why did you put this haram in me? It's filthy, it's bad, I don't want it."

But every single one of us cannot feel that. We don't realize it but it contaminates all our organs and they all curse us to the degree that they will bear witness against us on the Day of Qiyamah. We don't want that to happen.

Allah speaks through Rasulullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم - sallallahu alaihe wasallam) telling us that that portion of flesh which has been built or which has been made through haram will never ever enter Jannah because it needs to go into the fire to be burnt out. Only pure things can enter Jannah.

For that reason it is of utmost importance we rather lose money and rands and property and what have you than to even have a little bit of haram in our income. May Allah forgive us all.

Closing Dua

And may Allah grant us the full benefit of the month of Ramadan. May Allah accept us all.

"Our Lord, accept [this] from us. Indeed, You are the Hearing, the Knowing."

"Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire."

"May Allah send blessings, peace and grace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his companions."

"Exalted is your Lord, the Lord of might, from what they describe. And peace upon the messengers. And praise to Allah, Lord of the worlds."