Join the Heavens in Glorifying Allah | Sh. Mohamud Mohamed | Juz 15 Qur’an 30 for 30 S7 | Ramadan

Join the Heavens in Glorifying Allah

There are no three surahs in the Qur'an that I enjoy reading back-to-back than Al-Isra, Al-Kahf, and Maryam. Like these three surahs back-to-back, it is my favorite section of the Qur'an to go through. It is my garden.

We forget about more of the sins that we've committed. We forget about more of them. When we ask Allah for forgiveness and we try our best to think of all of them, just know that there's many more that Allah has overlooked and has forgiven.

How can Allah see the suffering of the Muslims in Gaza, in Sudan, occupied East Turkestan? How can it be that Allah is both all-knowing and all-powerful, and yet their evildoers persist in their wrongdoing? The Qur'an is full of lessons for those who are looking. As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, everyone. Welcome back to Qur'an 30 for 30.

Alhamdulillah, we are in Juz 15 and we are joined by, alhamdulillah, first-time guest, new to Yaqeen, an actual part of Yaqeen, alhamdulillah, part and parcel, Sheikh Mahmood Mohamed, alhamdulillah, How are you Sheikh? Alhamdulillah, Sheikh, good to be here. How have you been? Good, mashAllah. I'm well.

The Beautiful Names of Allah

Sheikh, we're gonna be talking about the names of Allah. What's your favorite name of Allah? My favorite name of Allah is the one that we're gonna cover this episode. I love the name Al-Haleem.

Forgiveness without respite. Forgiveness when Allah, He could punish you, and you're likely deserving of His punishment, but He opts to forgive you and continues to forgive you even after you sin and you transgress. It's a beautiful name.

Subhanallah, it's also, by the way, one of my favorite names. Subhanallah, truly one of my favorite names is Al-Haleem. I remember the first time that I dove into it, even when I was preparing for the Ramadan series, because it's every name of Allah, the way that He manifests it, even if there's a human manifestation of an attribute of the attribute of Allah, and of course we're never going to be anything like Him, but the one that human beings struggle with the most is forgiving people and letting things go, and especially holding back.

We're so quick to take revenge, and we're so quick to punish, we're so quick to discipline, we're so quick to this, so quick to that. So Allah's hilm, despite His ilm, His forbearance, despite His knowledge of us, is truly subhanallah, stunning, and alhamdulillah, may Allah allow us to manifest some of that amongst each other as well.

The Coherent Beauty of Surahs Al-Isra, Al-Kahf, and Maryam

Subhanallah, this actually, by the way, from a Jewish perspective, I think there are no three surahs in the Qur'an that I enjoy reading back to back than Al-Isra, Al-Kahf, and Maryam. Like these three surahs back to back, it is my favorite section of the Qur'an to go through. It is my garden when I'm doing any khatm, when I'm reading, when I'm reflecting.

Even like when I do the story of Al-Khadr alayhi salam and Musa alayhi salam, that whole story, it's like, if you just read this Juz from their perspective, the perspective of that, and then what happens in Maryam, it's incredible how coherent, how beautiful, how miraculous this Juz is and the stories that are found within it. They're so unbelievable, but they're still so relevant, which is the beauty of the Qur'an.

There are things that are happening, unbelievable in the sense like to a person, obviously, who's a skeptic of God and things of that sort. To us as believers, we believe them with full submission and tranquility. But Zakariya alayhi salam having a child at that age, Musa alayhi salam and Al-Khadr alayhi salam experiencing what they're experiencing and the sleepers in the cave. We believe all of this with full yaqeen, but the lessons are so relevant and so practical.

As-Samee' Al-Baseer: The All-Hearing and All-Seeing

So I'll do a quick overview. This obviously starts off with Surah Al-Isra. And in this Juz, this has As-Samee' Al-Baseer, the all-hearing and the all-seeing, all over it. I mean, it's so repeated in this Juz of the Qur'an.

But there are two things I want you to pay attention to in Surah Al-Isra. Surah Al-Isra is also, of course, Surah Bani Israel. So it combines almost two opposite themes, seemingly, if you're not paying close enough attention. But Allah heard and saw the pain of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and then took him on this miraculous journey. And Allah heard and saw the pain caused by Bani Israel and took them to account for it.

So it just shows you how the names of Allah can be interacted with differently depending on your state. How are you interacting with As-Samee' Al-Baseer right now? Is it from a place of comfort or accountability?

Glory be to the one who took his servant Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam by night from the sacred mosque to the furthest mosque being at Aqsa, may Allah liberate it, whose surroundings we have blessed so that we may show him some of our signs. Indeed, he alone is the all-hearing and the all-seeing.

Imam An-Nawawi rahimahullah talks about this first and foremost from the perspective of the way that a person who doesn't believe in the messenger of Allah by default does not believe in Allah himself and vice versa. Affirm the journey of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam because if he said it then he's telling the truth and in that I don't have to see it or hear it to believe it because if he heard it and saw it and experienced it being the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam that's enough for me. So he is As-Samee' Al-Baseer.

If anyone wants to question the hearing or the sight of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam or the experience of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, Allah saw it and he heard it and Allah of course facilitated it through and through. But here's what I want you to pay attention to. So first and foremost obviously Allah heard and saw the pain of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam in Ta'if and in his most difficult moments and then took him on this journey.

Four Functions of Divine Attributes

But in the first four ayat of Surah Al-Isra or Surah Bani Israel, Allah introduces a different layer of himself and every single one of them a different function of these attributes. So the next ayah is and we gave Musa the revelation and we made it a guide for Bani Israel and we stated don't take anyone but me as a wali, as a trustee of your affairs. Like you've been so used to being Fir'aun occupied that you might become Fir'aunic.

If you don't take Allah as your wakil, if you don't understand this you're going to just become your own Fir'auns which is subhanallah exactly what happens. They start to manifest the behavior of their enslaver the first moment that they are freed. So Allah introduced himself in the first verse as taking the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam on this miraculous journey.

Second verse Allah introduced himself as revealing scripture which comes with the notion of covenant. Third verse Oh descendants of those that we carried with Noah in the ark verily he was a grateful servant. Subhanallah there's a powerful connection that some of the Mufassereen make here that before Allah saved Bani Israel through Musa alayhi salam and parted the seas for them.

Allah saved their ancestors on the ark of Noah alayhi salam. The difference is Noah alayhi salam was grateful and those that were with him were deserving. So before the seas were parted for you an ark was created for your ancestors to be put on it so that they could be saved from a flood. So aren't you paying attention.

So the third one is Allah saves in this dunya. So first one takes on a journey second one descends revelation third one saves in this world and then lastly and we warn Bani Israel in the scripture you will certainly cause corruption in the land twice and you will become extremely arrogant.

So Allah now accounting according to the blessings that he gave. So it's just very interesting subhanallah that you have four functions of the same attributes coming out in the first four verses here of Surah Al-Isra which just shows you the way that these things are actually meant to manifest in our lives and that you interact with Allah with your deeds and you will experience Allah based upon your deeds as well.

The Connection Between Al-Isra and Al-Kahf

The last thing I'll say in terms of just a nice connection. The first verse of Surah Al-Isra and the first verse of Surah Al-Kahf. The first verse of Surah Al-Isra Allah gives us the imagery subhanallah he is the one who took his servant on that journey through the heavens. The first verse of Surah Al-Kahf all praise be to the one who descended his book upon his abd.

Both of the times he took his servant to the heavens or he descended revelation from the heavens upon his servant but when we are dealing with Allah it is always vertical and everything horizontal should be interpreted in light of the vertical. You're looking up you're dealing with Allah you're dealing with the lord who ascends who descends who honors who humiliates based upon what he knows of us subhanahu wa ta'ala so may Allah make us amongst the worthy that exemplify and manifest the best of the servants who were saved on the ark of Noah and who embodied what the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam embodied as a grateful servant and not like Bani Israel who took the blessings and then manifested the worst of behavior and ended up being held to account allahumma ameen.

The Glorification of All Creation

I mean just these four ayat that you're talking about really you know Allah has always given the dhikr and the reminder showing that what happened with prophets before you being Musa and Noah alayhim assalam and how the manifestation of his power his qudrah his hilm at the same time you know interestingly enough dealing with the sea whether it's parting the sea or having Noah with his companions on the sea but showing how subhanallah Allah he's Al-Hadi and he will always guide in different ways and people respond in different ways when you capitalize on that with a particular name of how it interacts with you and how Allah is reminding us he's the one that can he's able to do all things bringing you up at the nighttime and he's done the same he's done similar to that for Musa and that which was literally miraculous and beyond human capabilities.

The seven heavens and the earth and everything contained therein all glorify Allah. This glorification of Allah - the ayah preceding it when we talk about Allah removing, doing tanzih of what they attribute to him and what is it that they attribute to Allah - that Allah is a party to being worshiped, Allah's daughters, that there are people who share in worship. Allah says the seven heavens the earth and all that it contains but what happens - we were not created with the capacity to understand the tasbih of Allah that all of creation does. It's not a frequency we're tuning into and still Allah is still lenient easy with us oft forgiving of us.

So Allah how often does the servant transgress and we talk about the word haleem one of the things that has been mentioned before but it's important to mention no one is born being forbearing nobody wakes up and suddenly understands how to be patient patience so verily knowledge is gained by seeking knowledge and being forbearing the only way to learn forbearance is to be forbearing so what happens life throws you a curveball that you're not ready for.

But the idea that the servant there are so many things that we've accrued in sin over the course of our lifetimes that Allah will simply just look away. That leniency the lord has with us when you think about this one of the truisms of life is that you will be wronged and you will wrong others but if you were to ask people they're so hardwired to believe that they will only ever be wronged.

That person did this to me this person did that to me this person looked at me the wrong way they cut me off in traffic we have a running tally of all of the times that we've been wronged and yet if we were told at any point ever Mahmoud what have you done to the fellow believers what have you done who have you wronged you would come up with a blank you would say either you would deny that you've done any wrongdoing oh who me I've never done anything bad or you would minimize your wrongdoing yeah it wasn't that serious and it wasn't that big of a deal but the hilm of Allah the beautiful is that we don't deserve it and yet Allah grants it willingly and openly what a mercy and an honor for the believer.

The Connection Between Creation's Tasbih and Allah's Forgiveness

What I'm saying subhanallah firstly you know Allah is talking about his creation for firstly wanting you to ponder over it and then from that Allah says لا تفقهون تسبيحهم how these inanimate objects are glorifying Allah and it's well beyond your capacity but as you are you going to take him as a wakeel are you going to take him as someone that you trust in his knowledge and trust that what he's saying is true and know that he is able to do all things and has power over all things you included because he said ومن فيهن and when he talks about the earth the earth everything in it which we are part of it Allah being haleem because because we become neglectful we forget the greatness of Allah his capacity of what he's able to do and when we forget that is how we become of those that commit those sins and subhanallah that's from our nature being that we are nass and some of the scholars say naseen which means to be forgetful neglectful that's why at times it's very very important to ponder over his creation and when you ponder over it you say subhanallah and that's why as you mentioned the scholars say tanzih which is a confirmation that Allah is far from any likeness of his creation when you look at creation and you say allahu akbar and then you say subhanallah you say Allah is so grand that he could create something like this and subhanallah the fact that he creates the grand canyon creates us with the amfusikum in your own cells your anatomy physiology do you not see when you realize that you know that Allah is much greater than that because he is Al-Khaaliq he is a creator of it so Allah being the one that is forbearing and all forgiving even though you know his power and you understand his power or you see the greatness of creation understanding that it didn't create itself what are you doing in this life an acknowledgement of the greatness of the one that brought all this into existence you included and that's why it was beautiful when you mentioned you know when people will ask you about your faults and you'll say don't change the subject I'm talking about him or her right now what they're doing it's important to look at ourselves always always and an easy way to do that one way here is Allah reminding us of the creation of the heavens and the earth everything that it contains and the fact that they themselves do tasbih why are we not doing that with our tongues subhanallah you know we think of something great or think of something that we've done we say subhanallah Allah is free from any mistake that I've made Allah is free from any blame of anything that I've done or what someone has done to me because that's very important as well we may think okay what is going on around the world how could Allah allow this to happen subhanallah we say subhanallah when that response subhanallah Allah is free from any blame Allah is free from any fault as a matter of fact it's more of a reason for us to look at ourselves so I think that's important that's a reflection that I get from this.

Divine Justice and the Destruction of Nations

So Allah knows the depth to which everything around us is glorifying him he also knows the depth to which people are sinning in a way that others don't so let's pivot to another verse very interesting verse 17 we're talking about the but at some point Allah did destroy nations so in verse 17 how many nations did we destroy after Noah and sufficient is your lord as all aware and all seeing of the sins of the servants like it's almost like just like you can't understand the tasbih of everything around you Allah is the only one who can understand at what point the threshold of sin has been met to where destruction was warranted upon nations like Allah doesn't have to give you an explanation of everything that was done or at what point like the trigger is being pulled or whatever it is but you need to know that Allah is he's well aware all aware and all seeing.

Subhanallah shaykh I think one of the really interesting things especially in the moment that we're in and this is not something that only young people suffer from but typically this is attributed to youngsters they'll come to teachers to parents to mashayikh and they'll say this is the worst time in history how can Allah see the suffering of the muslims in gaza and sudan occupied east turkestan how can it be that Allah is both all-knowing and all-powerful and yet their evildoers persist in their wrongdoing and one of the things that Allah has given us as a rejoinder to that is that the quran is full of lessons for those who are looking when you look at the punishment that was brought upon the people of Ad it didn't happen overnight Allah says how many communities and villages and towns these sinful transgressive places did we allow to kind of do their thing until our punishment sees them the idea that Allah's omnipotence and his all-powerfulness or his complete command is in contrast or is somehow in conflict with his ability to deliver justice.

My other favorite name at this moment is when that time comes he's swift in his punishment but that punishment it has to be understood in light of that hilm so on one hand Allah sees our transgressions we were slow to seek forgiveness we're sometimes too arrogant seek forgiveness and yet Allah overlooks because he knows eventually the servant will come back but there are servants and there are communities who are so heedless of this that Allah's justice has to be complete as well and that when that punishment comes that comes it was well earned delivered on time and the result of Allah's complete justice.

Yeah so the people of Noah he called to them for how many years day and night the people of Ad told time and time again do not transgress these are this is the line don't cross it and the lines in the sand once they're crossed they can't be uncrossed there are certain lines once crossed that there's no coming back and the beauty of that is that the believer his heart is at rest knowing that the oppressor and the person being oppressed they're in this kind of the seesaw relationship and Allah says in the quran which is the nature of days on some days victory on some defeat but when that defeat comes to the oppressor it's total complete and that's it and when victory comes and when victory comes it's total complete yeah and it's at its appointed and acquainted time.

The Sins We Forget

I just think it's subhanallah I always remind myself you know that we forget about more of the sins that we've committed we forget about more of them when we ask Allah for forgiveness so we try our best to think of all of them just know that there's many more that Allah has overlooked and has forgiven you know that we've done individually or done collectively or done to someone else that person hasn't forgotten about it but you forgot about them and Allah hasn't forgot about either case so this month ramadan yeah this month of ramadan it's a huge opportunity you know when you see this at last month Allah is all aware all seeing you know it really it really should cause one to just say subhanallah astaghfirullah mention his name continuously I think that's a huge resounding message that's a big one man.

Subhanallah because like you forget the harm you did to someone else and you don't even realize you harmed them because maybe they took it like some people are not patient out of character they're patient out of circumstance like they don't have the ability to respond it's like it's like when the bully says i didn't know this bothered you because someone is being bullied it's like no like you were devastating me for years this person tossed and turned every night yeah this person tossed and turned every night they have trauma because of it and like you kind of just went out went on with your life not realizing what you did to them and that's also something that you have to be seeking forgiveness for and you have to be deeply introspective about is you're kind of reassessing your entire life like you don't want to be called to account for that on the day of judgment so to the best of your ability like there is something to say about the believer later on in life making amends like realizing like hey i need to make amends a sibling sometimes a friend sometimes sometimes your parents sometimes like man like i really that's why subhanallah is you know what that's an obvious don't give nicknames bad nicknames how many times do we see it to where like someone got used to being called a negative nickname and kind of just laughed it off went with the flow but they really hated it they really hated it so from the character of islam is don't even say it in the first place don't put it out in the first place because it might not be that that person will be able to tell you they don't like it but they really don't like it so that's that's part of manifesting I think some of these characteristics and verses as well inshallah.

It was great to have you with us we're looking forward to having you on many many more yaqeen programs we're grateful to have you as part of the team inshallah we'll see you all tomorrow.