Ismail ibn Musa Menk The Reality of Life & the Heart

The Reality of Life & the Heart

Opening Praise and Testimony

Alhamdulillahi rabbil alameen. We praise Him, ask for His help and guidance and we seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our deeds. Whom Allah guides, none can misguide him and whom He misguides, none can guide him and I bear witness that there is no god but Allah Alone, with no partner and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. Peace and blessings be upon him and upon his family and his companions.

Call to Consciousness and Remembrance of Death

My brothers and sisters in Islam, the first thing that we remind each other is to be conscious of our maker, to constantly seek the forgiveness of Allah. We are witnessing today again the janazah prayers of a brother who is 16 years old. This should serve as a reminder for us that we are going to be returning to Allah. And one of the biggest ways that we could help ourselves is to seek the forgiveness of Allah. May Allah grant him Jannatul Firdaus and grant his family members and those whom he has left behind the patience to go through this trying time. Ameen.

Following the Sunnah of Seeking Forgiveness

So my brothers and sisters, if we look at the life of Muhammad (peace be upon him) we will come to learn that putting into practice what he did is the most beneficial thing for us. One of the things he used to do on a daily basis was seeking the forgiveness of Allah. You and I know he had no sins but he still asked Allah's forgiveness not just once, not 10 times or 20, not 30 or 50, but the narration states between 70 and 100 times a day. He used to ask Allah's forgiveness.

Let's be honest with ourselves. My brothers, my sisters, how many times do we let the days pass without having sought true forgiveness of Allah even once? And this is where we say we need a reminder on a constant basis.

My brothers, my sisters, what does it cost you to turn to Allah? What does it cost you to repent to Allah? One day it will be your last day.

Prayer as if it is Your Last

When we look at the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) speaking about prayer, the five daily salah, he says very beautifully:

"Pray as if you are bidding farewell" (Reference: Ibn Majah 4171)

When you fulfill your prayer, fulfill it as though it is your farewell prayer, which means it's the last chance I'm going to get to fulfill the prayer. Do it properly.

Now, shaitan comes to us and makes us forget that. If we do not forget that and if we were to fulfill every prayer that we engaged in as though it was our last chance to please Allah, a day will definitely come when that would be our last prayer. So there would be no regret.

But shaitan comes to us and makes us think that you know what? It's too long. You've been praying for such a long time thinking that it's your last prayer. I think it's enough now. When shaitan does that, that's when we distance ourselves from Allah. So let's persevere. Let's remain consistent in that fulfillment of the worship that we have undertaken for the sake of Allah. May Allah make it easy for us.

The Power of Good Deeds in Erasing Sins

The same applies to seeking forgiveness. That seeking of forgiveness would actually nullify or should I say delete, cancel the sins that we have committed. And there are plenty. When you do good deeds for the sake of Allah, they automatically delete the minor sins that you may have been committing. As Allah tells us:

"Indeed good deeds erase bad deeds" (Quran 11:114)

These are the minor sins that at times we're not even aware of having committed them. When you do a good deed, you come for salah with jamā'ah, or you have fulfilled that salah that is fard, between the two salawat, perhaps what you have done in terms of minor sin would be forgiven by Allah and you wouldn't even have known.

But that does not mean we should not seek the forgiveness of Allah because we commit all sorts of sins. Sometimes the weight of those sins we don't really realize. We don't know.

The Weight of Deeds on the Day of Judgment

Each good deed and each sin has a weight in the eyes of Allah. When you look at the narrations that explain the day of judgment and the way that we will be giving our accounts or the accounts shall be taken, every time a scale is mentioned, even in the Quran, Allah says:

"And We place the scales of justice for the Day of Resurrection, so no soul will be treated unjustly at all. And if there is [even] the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it forth. And sufficient are We as accountant." (Quran 21:47)

On the day of judgment, the scales of justice shall be placed, and Allah says even if there is a mustard seed's weight worth of a deed, We will bring it forth.

So these scales that are being spoken about in this verse and even in the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him), they will weigh our deeds. That proves that the deeds have a weight. Good deeds have a weight. Bad deeds have a weight.

The Gravity of Our Words and Actions

We might consider something very light, but in the eyes of Allah it is extremely heavy. Like Allah says about slander and false accusation:

"You think it is insignificant while it is, in the sight of Allah, tremendous." (Quran 24:15)

You made someone's life difficult. You made someone cry. You made someone go through a depression because of your statements, because of the foul language you have or the bad accusations that you have leveled against them. You shall pay for it. May Allah make us more conscious of what we say.

There was once a statement by one of the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) concerning another where she only uttered the words "Oh she is short" - short as in she is a shorty basically. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says: "By Allah, if that statement was in the form of a droplet of ink, it would change the color of the ocean." (Reference: Abu Dawud 4875)

Subhanallah, how many of us call each other names and say things and we don't even realize?

Returning to the Sunnah of Constant Istighfar

And this is why I say that if we go back to the sunnah of Rasulullah (peace be upon him) of seeking constant forgiveness on a regular basis, on a daily basis - morning, afternoon, evening and night - we would inshallah be doing ourselves a favor. No one else.

Remember, Allah does not need your good deed or mine. If the whole world were to engage in worshipping Allah and Allah alone, it would not increase the value or the kingdom of Allah. And if everyone were to commit sins, it would never decrease the kingdom or the value or the ownership of Allah. Rather it is for us or against us. If I do good, it's for me. If I do bad, it's against me. That is clear from the verses of the Quran.

Worship with Pure Intention and Joy

So we need to know Allah accepts from us that which is pure, that which is done for his sake. When you're coming to the masjid, when you're engaging in an act of worship, my brothers and sisters, do it wholeheartedly with pleasure for the sake of Allah. Do it happily. Don't just come because it's an obligation I need to get done with it. Remember Allah does not need it.

I promise you the fact that we're aging and we become older as the days pass, and sometimes we get so old that we start feeling the pains and the bones begin to ache - that's a gift of Allah telling you: You know where you're going. You know which direction you're moving. It's amazing. We think of it. We feel it. But we're never conscious of it.

Age and Illness as Reminders

Let's become conscious of the fact that there comes a time if Allah has blessed you, He may give you age so that you can turn to him. Age is definitely a blessing because you have more reminders.

When you know I've got a terminal illness, it's a gift of Allah. May Allah grant cure to all those who are sick and ill. As much as we want the cure, doesn't it bring us closer to Allah? Doesn't it make us realize I have nowhere to go besides back to Allah?

But when you're young and bubbling with energy and bursting with energy, sometimes you tend to forget that death can overtake you at any time as well. So we tend to turn away from Allah.

The Special Blessing of Worshipping in Youth

And that is why the Prophet (peace be upon him) says when you're young, bubbling, bursting with energy, known as shabab. Shabab are not those who eat the kebab. No! Shabab are those who are young, energetic. Subhanallah, if you can still worship Allah in your youth as you're known as shabab, and you have still been conscious of Allah and developed yourself in a beautiful way, there is a special shade for you on the day of Qiyamah because you deserve it. You deserve it.

The hadith states:

(Sahih Bukhari 1423, Sahih Muslim 1031)

"Seven will be shaded by Allah under His shade on the day when there is no shade except His shade... and a young person who grew up in the worship of Allah" (Sahih Bukhari 1423, Sahih Muslim 1031)

May Allah help us all to become from among those whom when we have the energy, we utilize it in the worship of Allah.

The Heart: The Center of Our Spiritual Well-being

So the hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him), he says very beautifully:

(Sahih Bukhari 52, Sahih Muslim 1599)

"Behold! There is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt and that is the heart." (Sahih Bukhari 52, Sahih Muslim 1599)

The heart, my beloved brothers and sisters, is an organ that begins to pump before the soul is blown into the body initially. According to the Islamic teachings, when you see the heart pumping in the fetus within the womb of a mother, it is not necessarily that which has a soul in it but rather initially a muscle that is moving, doing its job. Subhanallah.

And then there comes a stage where the soul is blown in and it is given life. Subhanallah, amazing. That is a heart. It starts off like a little clot. In fact, this hadith calls it mudghah, which is like a chewed little clot, a clot that is given a bit of shape to it.

Physical and Spiritual Diseases of the Heart

And what happens when the soul is blown in? It now is a heart that pumps blood and connected to the life of the human as well to a certain degree. And this is why medicine talks about someone being brain dead. It's a topic on its own, but it goes to prove a few factors that Islam has actually taught.

But if we were to look at this heart, if it is pure and good in every sense of purity and goodness, then the body is pure and good. When a person is sick and ill physically, what do they do? They'd like to go for a blood test. Why? Because if the sickness is in your body, it will be picked up by a blood test. That blood pumps through the heart. So if the heart is diseased, what happens? The body is diseased. I pick it up on your finger. Subhanallah, look at the power of the words of Muhammad (peace be upon him) - not just the spiritual diseases but even the physical diseases.

Spiritual Diseases and Their Cure

And then you have the spiritual diseases. My brothers and sisters, the jealousy, the envy, the hatred, the love to commit sin is something very dangerous. It is a disease of the heart. If you're not going to fight your nafs, you're not going to get anywhere. If you're committing sin and you're enjoying it, your heart is diseased. You need to make sure you tackle it by being powerful, by overpowering that nafs of yours and ensuring that you fix up the cancer that might be of a spiritual nature rather than a physical nature.

We sometimes have sicknesses almost like a spiritual heart attack, clogged up, and we don't want to treat ourselves with the spiritual stents. Subhanallah, but if we were physically sick, we would go to every hospital and every doctor to find out how we can improve ourselves. How ironic! The body, no matter how hard you try, will never get you beyond a hundred years in almost all cases. What about the spiritual heart that we're talking about? It's going to take you into eternity. So let's give it a little bit more importance. May Allah help us.

Seeking Allah's Protection from Sin

Those who love to commit sin, may Allah make us strong so that we can fight it and feel good about it. Make a dua, my brothers and sisters. Say to Allah: "Oh Allah, create a barrier between me and sin.

Whenever I want to sin, let a barrier come in."

"O Allah, make what is lawful enough for me, as opposed to what is unlawful, and make me independent of all others besides You." (Tirmidhi 3563)

What a powerful dua of the Prophet (peace be upon him).

Loving Good Deeds and Caring for Others

And one more thing I'd like to make mention of. The heart should be such that not only do we dislike to commit sin, but we love to commit good deeds, or to do good deeds should I say. So whenever there is a good deed, fight yourself. Make sure you don't become lazy. Make sure that you love the good deed and you're doing it for the love of Allah, for the pleasure of your maker. He made you. He is in control of you.

I come to pray, I will take my time. I'm not just going to come and try to get out as soon as possible. No, I will come, I will read a little bit of Quran, I will remember Allah, I will look at my brothers and sisters and I will feel the care within my heart for everyone and the love and the concern to help them, to correct them, to guide them if they're going wrong, or to learn from them where I am faltering.

But I'm filled with love. I'm filled with kindness. I'm not filled with hate and an ill feeling. I'm not filled with that which is negative but rather that which is absolutely positive for the sake of Allah.

The Shortness of Life and Our Many Duties

Life is too short and our duties are many. So to love obeying Allah, to love goodness for others, to love for others what you would love for yourself - all these are part and parcel of the purification of this beautiful heart.

And in this way, when we seek the forgiveness of Allah, we will definitely be heard by Allah.

The Best News: The Reward of Seeking Forgiveness

And I want to share with you the best news. The Prophet (peace be upon him) says:

(Ibn Majah 4250)

"The one who repents from sin is like one who has no sin." (Ibn Majah 4250)

What great mercy of Allah! One who did wrong and then recollects and says, "Oh Allah, I did wrong" - he has now recognized Allah. He now knows that it is Allah who will forgive me or punish me. Isn't he equal to the one who always knew that? Haven't they now got to a similar level? Subhanallah.

A person who has 500,000 pounds or a million is now known as a millionaire. And if someone else made it after 20 years, he is also now known as a millionaire. Subhanallah, look at the mercy of Allah.

Closing Prayer

May Allah forgive every single one of us. He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.