Friday, March 1, 2013

Advices : Luqman AS


Alhamdulillahi Rabbil A’alimeen, Wal Aaqibatul Muttaqeen, Wasalaatu Wassalamu Ala Rusoolihil Kareem,

Amaa Baad

Assalam o allaikum Wr Wb. My dear respected brothers, sisters and elders of the community,

The mufassireen have mentioned that Luqman AS did not have a very pleasant outlook but he was greatly and highly respected among the people. At a point in his lifetime he used to graze the herds of sheep. Once a colleague of Luqman AS who also used to graze the sheep, happen to pass by a big gathering in which there was so many people who were gathered around a person in a particular discourse. When the colleague went closer he saw Luqman AS sitting among them who were benefiting from the teachings of Luqman AS. He goes upto to Luqman AS and says to him that, ‘Aren’t you the same person with whom I used to graze sheep together?’ Luqman AS said, ‘yes!’. He asked, ‘ Then how is it that Allah SWT has blessed you with such a status among the people that so many people are benefiting from your discourse?’ Luqman AS replied, ‘ That the acceptance, the qubooliyat of a human soul is in the hand of Allah SWT but outwardly, it appears to me that my qubooliyat is because I have never been careless with my tongue’, meaning that Luqman AS kept his tongue safe from any kind of evil and kept other people safe from the evil of tongue.

Almight Allah SWT mentions about Luqman AS as a person with wisdom, who was known as Hakeem Luqman, and six advises or words of wisdom are mentioned in Quran.
Allah SWT says,

وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَا لُقْمَانَ الْحِكْمَةَ أَنِ اشْكُرْ لِلَّهِ وَمَن يَشْكُرْ فَإِنَّمَا يَشْكُرُ لِنَفْسِهِ وَمَن كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ حَمِيدٌ
And, indeed, we granted this wisdom unto Luq­man: “Be grateful unto Allah - for he who is grateful [unto Him] is but grateful for the good of his own self; whereas he who chooses to be ungrateful [ought to know that], verily, Allah is self-sufficient, ever to be praised!”

Almighty Allah SWT is absolutely independent and Allah is worthy of all praises. Allah SWT is not in need of our shukr to Him, rather we are in need of expressing our shukr to His greatness.

If the entire world had to get together and they were to worship together to Allah SWT, every creation and every part of the world falls into sajda, then too, that will not increase the Izzat and greatness of Allah SWT and if all of mankind decides to leave Allah SWT, that too will not decrease even a fraction of the respect of Allah SWT.

Allahumma La Uhsi SanaAn A’leyk Antaka Ma Asneyka Ala Nafsik

This is the dua of Nabi SAW that ‘ We cannot encompass fulfilling the haq of your praises. You are as You have praised yourself, we do not even know that.’

Allah has bestowed us with naymah and bounties so it is our duty to express the shukr of those bounties.

Allah mentions to us in Quran Al Kareem:
وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نِعْمَتَ اللّهِ لاَ تُحْصُوهَا
And should you try to count God's blessings, you could never compute them.

I just want to think of one bounty of Allah SWT, leave aside all that Allah SWT has blessed us with. Allah SWT has given us this aql, the brain, the intelligence. Even after years and years of research, human being today cannot claim that he understands the way in which our brain works. Scientists now claim that they know more about the brain than they did 100 years ago, but what they know of the brain is not even a scratch compared to the knowledge of the being that created this brain.

In one hadeeth, Rasulallah SAW mentions, that Allah SWT says, ‘ I will reward people and I will punish people based on the aql that I have given to the people.’

This aql through which man today has built the entire infrastructure of the world, through which insaan has designed a way of life today to suit his nafs and desires. Did we ever sit back and ponder, as to how much we know about this very aql? Did we ever used our aql to realize that we forget every day to say shukr to Allah SWT for this aql.

Rasulallah SAW has said, ‘ ManLLAM YashkuriNaas Lam Yashkurillah’
That person who does not make the shukr of the people has not made the shukr of Allah SWT.

This is the first advice, that when people make some Ihsaan upon us, we should recognize it, appreciate it and we should thank them. So the first advice from Allah SWT to Luqman was that Wisdom was bestowed upon Luqman and allah SWT asked Luqman to be thankful to Allah SWT for that.

The second advice that Allah SWT gives to Luqman AS is:

وَإِذْ قَالَ لُقْمَانُ لِابْنِهِ وَهُوَ يَعِظُهُ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تُشْرِكْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ

Behold, Luqman said to his son by way of instruction: "O my son! join not in worship (others) with Allah. Verily, ascribing partners with Allah SWT is Shirk al Adheem.”

If we ponder about the greatness of Allah SWT and the majesty and grandeur, we cannot even begin to comprehend to associate any partners with Him. How can we equate anyone to Allah SWT. He is the one and Unique. He is alone and complete in His zaat.
What bigger injustice will it be to associate a partner to such a Being, the Creator who is not dependant on anyone, but everything is dependant on Him.

The third advice Luqman AS was given:
وَوَصَّيْنَا الْإِنسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُ وَهْنًا عَلَى وَهْنٍ وَفِصَالُهُ فِي عَامَيْنِ أَنِ اشْكُرْ لِي وَلِوَالِدَيْكَ إِلَيَّ الْمَصِيرُ
And [God says:] ‘We have enjoined upon man goodness towards his parents: his mother bore him by bearing strain upon strain, and his utter dependence on her lasted two years: [hence, O man,] be grateful towards Me and towards thy parents, [and remember that] with Me is all journeys’ end.”

See that after the mention of the Tauheed of Allah SWT, the rights of parents are mentioned. Mufassireen have mentioned that there is a close link between the Rights of Allah SWT and the rights towards one’s parents. Allah has created us through the means of our parents and that is why, after the haq of Allah SWT the huqooq of parents are mentioned.

Rasulallah SAW has mentioned in one hadeeth, ‘ The pleasure of Allah, the happiness of Allah SWT lies in the pleasure of father and the displeasure of Allah SWT lies in the displeasure of father.’

One day a father, he asked his son, ‘ O son, what is the time?’ The son told the time. The father asked again after a few seconds, ‘ O son, what is the time?’ The son got irritated and said , I just told you the time, whats wrong with you?’ Father said, ‘ O son, I was asking, what is the time?’ The son said, ‘ O Father, I just told you the time, how many times will you ask me?’
Father said, ‘ I remember the day, when you asked me about a toy dozens of time, but not a single time you saw a cliché on my forehead.’
We need to understand, that today we get irritated by the demands of our parents. We get annoyed at their wishes. Didn’t they have their chance to be annoyed at us? The difficulty that we feel with our parents today, is not comparable to the difficulty of a mother that stays up all night to make sure her child doesn’t remain hungry. Allah SWT says to us, never say even ‘UFF’ to you parents. The mufassireen have mentioned that if there was a word smaller than Uff Allah would have mentioned that.

Rasulallah SAW says in a hadeeth :

AL JANNATU TA7TA AQDAAMI UMMAHAAT
The Heaven lies beneath the feet of the mothers.

Meaning if you displease your mother, you displease Allah SWT and if you please your mother, you please Allah SWT.

INCIDENT OF MUSA AND BUTCHER


The fourth advice given was:

وَإِن جَاهَدَاكَ عَلى أَن تُشْرِكَ بِي مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلَا تُطِعْهُمَا وَصَاحِبْهُمَا فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعْرُوفًا وَاتَّبِعْ سَبِيلَ مَنْ أَنَابَ إِلَيَّ ثُمَّ إِلَيَّ مَرْجِعُكُمْ فَأُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

"But if they strive to make thee join in worship with Me things of which thou hast no knowledge, obey them not; yet bear them company in this life with justice (and consideration), and follow the way of those who turn to me (in love): in the end the return of you all is to Me, and I will tell you the truth (and meaning) of all that ye did."

If the parents put you in a condition where they forcefully make you associate partners with Allah SWT, then do not obey them in this matter but even in this matter refuse them politely and gently. It is not acceptable even in this state to be verbally abusive to one’s parents.

That is why Allah SWT gives us the dua,
Rabbir HamHuma Kama Rabbayani Sagheera.
O Allah have mercy on my parents, as they did when they raised me from my childhood.

The fifth advice given was:

يَا بُنَيَّ إِنَّهَا إِن تَكُ مِثْقَالَ حَبَّةٍ مِّنْ خَرْدَلٍ فَتَكُن فِي صَخْرَةٍ أَوْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ أَوْ فِي الْأَرْضِ يَأْتِ بِهَا اللَّهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَطِيفٌ خَبِيرٌ
"O my son!" (said Luqman), "If there be (but) the weight of a mustard-seed and it were (hidden) in a rock, or (anywhere) in the heavens or on earth, Allah will bring it forth: for Allah understands the finest mysteries, (and) is well-acquainted (with them).

Luqman AS says that even if you hide small pride in your heart, Allah will bring it forth on the day of Qayyama. There is no reason why a human being should have any pride. We know what we are inside, look at our Nafs and we will recognize Allah SWT. How weak, feable, minute in our stature we are, that we forget the One who deserves the real honor and pride.

And lastly we are told:

وَلَا تُصَعِّرْ خَدَّكَ لِلنَّاسِ وَلَا تَمْشِ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَحًا إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ كُلَّ مُخْتَالٍ فَخُورٍ
And turn not thy cheek away from people in [false] pride, and walk not haughtily on earth: for, behold, God does not love anyone who, out of self- conceit, acts in a boastful manner.

Luqman AS tells us here that do not spoil the glow of your face for people. You may not agree with people, but you must agree to disagree. We may have difference of opinion, or disagreement with the people, but that does not give us the ijaazat or permission to treat people in a disrespectful way. When we are agreeing that we are humans and not angels, that we have weaknesses then we are also agreeing that we have difference of opinions. If we hear an opinion contrary to ours and we get angry, then it means there is something not right inside our heart and there is need for Islah or correctness.

May Allah SWT give us the taufeeq to understand these beautiful advices and to understand them for if we truly bring into practice these advices, they can be means of nijaat in aakhira.

Wa Ma Taufeeqi Ilallah Billah.
~Khutbah given at Muslim Association of New Brunswick -February 22, 2013