And always a reminder for myself ana abdukal 'ajeezu, dayeefu, miskinu, zhalim, wa jahl,
and but for the grace of Allah’s (AJ) rahmah and mercy that we are still in existence.
And the immensity of Allah’s (AJ) gift of guidance in which to bring us to the gates
of maghfirah - the gates of forgiveness and repentance in which is a salvation of the
highest realm and the highest reality.
And to grant the knowledges of these realities and these blessed souls and blessed events
so that to further dress us from the treasures of paradise and beyond the levels of paradise
into the Muhammadan heart and Muhammadan haqqaiqs (realities).
We pray that Allah (AJ) to dress us and bless us with these infinite realities, infinite
blessings that have no beginning and no end in their understanding and in their comprehension.
As much as Allah (AJ) take a soul - the deeper it can go into these realities.
And immensity of that, that's the gift that Allah (AJ) grants - ‘Ilm al Laduni wa hikmat
bis Saliheen (Divinely Knowledge and Wisdom of the Righteous) . Those whom were granted
a knowledge and a wisdom they've been truly given the greatest gift that Allah (AJ) can
give.
We pray that Allah (AJ) grant us from those realities, dress us from those realities,
bless us from these realities.
And that by virtue of our struggle in life that we are ambassadors of this reality.
That when they encourage us to struggle not only because of what you want to achieve and
stations that you may want to open.
And this is where most people want to struggle for themselves, they want to struggle for
their ability to see things, to feel things, to accomplish something in spirituality.
And they begin to teach that, ‘That is an initial phase.’
That everybody's natural desire is to want to achieve something.
And the masters of this achievement they teach us by their example.
Imam Hussain (as) and all the holy companions and all the Ahlul Bayt (Holy family of Prophet
ﷺ) they teach us by their example, that some things and sometime in your life your
faith will grow in which you begin to struggle no longer only for yourself but your struggle
is for everything that you love.
Everything that is held dear to you, you struggle for that.
And that the praying for yourself at some point became not so important as the praying
for all those whom you love and have entered into your heart.
And that becomes dear to the Divinely Presence, that becomes dear to the reality of Sayyidina
Muhammad ﷺ, and they begin to inspire, ‘That's why We gave you what We gave you.
Is that when We give you something from the heavens we want you to distribute it.
By your good deeds and your good actions care for others, care for your family, care for
your children, pray for them, sacrifice and achieve for all the souls that you love for
Allah (AJ) will accept your gift.’
Just like in dunya (material world) you achieve so that you can make money and as a result
of money you spend it on your home and your children so they won't be hungry.
The reminder for akhirah (hereafter) is more important.
That anytime we push ourself that, ‘Why you got to do more, why gotta do a little
bit of this and little bit of that.’
And the push is that it's not for you at some point.
You may feel full and satisfied and they're reminding, ‘No do for the ones whom Allah
(AJ) going to make weak in your life, and you'll see them all around you.’
So that as a reminder Allah (AJ) said, ‘Do you see why everything around you is like
weak like that?
Because We want you to struggle for them.’
So Allah (AJ) shows the deficiency, shows somethings wrong, the sadness that you see
that they're not going to achieve, ‘I’m not going to see them.’
If you miss people in this world what about the oceans of eternity?
That if you achieve something of a high status, what are you going to do when those whom you
love they didn't achieve?
So these masters are teaching, ‘What Allah (AJ) gave to us by virtue of who we are, Allah
(AJ) gave’ but they felt a pity for all those who will come after, and their souls
to be blessed, their souls to be dressed.
Somebody has to care for those souls.
So, then they went more, they went the extra mile, they struggled harder, they gave immensely
from themselves not because they were in need of it.
That's why the stories that personalize it, it discredits everything.
If you tell that story as if it's a personal nature and a personal vengeance and, ‘One-on-one
I’m going to get retribution and curse this one,’ no.
The immensity of Imam Hussain (as) is, ‘I didn't need it, I didn't need any of this
difficulty.
My station is set by virtue of who my grandfather is, it's finished - my bread is in the food.
But I went to impress him, I went to show my love for him because this is what he loved
of his nation,’ and he didn't want to be embarrassed on the day of judgment.
He said, ‘What can I do for such a beloved soul that I love so much?
I’ll go and struggle more, a struggle which the earth hasn't seen that type of self-sacrifice.’
And to the day of judgment that story will be remembered.
But we are the weak ones that love them and they inspire us, ‘Next time you want to
fast, fast an extra day for the people whom you love.
Next time you pray, pray an extra prayer and give it as a gift for the souls of your children
and those whom you love who they won't make where you're making.
They won't reach to where you're reaching because the dunya becomes more and more difficult
every day, more and more darker every day.’
And if they did better than you that was a big gift from Allah (AJ) but 99% is going
to be the other direction.
So, if you can do a little bit more they inspire, ‘Go, go that extra amount for the sake of
those whom you love.
For the sake of their descendants and the children that you have, the children's children
that you haven't met yet.’
Means live a life in which you do more and live for others in service of Allah (AJ) to
the benefit of others.
When the benefit for yourself is enough and you begin to live a life of service for the
benefit of others that becomes then the example of these great souls, the shaykhs, Ahlul Bayt,
the Holy Companions.
They try to live in that example of these holy examples.
That live a life of service, live a life in which you can do a little bit more for the
benefit of souls that love you and won't reach.
And that every time they pray, they pray Allah (AJ) to accept their service, to accept their
actions, to accept what they're doing Ya Rabbi and dress them and bless them.
And that what makes the system so blessed because whatever we think we're giving as
a gift to the souls of those whom we love Allah (AJ) infinitely multiplies that reality.
That, ‘You're not going to outdo My Divine generosity.
Because I like your character and the way you think, the way you're giving of yourself
and your ‘amal (good deed) and your actions - I multiply it beyond your imagination.’
And that becomes the secret of everyone's struggle.
If you struggle for yourself you reach a point you think, ‘I’m okay.
I don't need to do any more.
The beard is the length it's supposed to be, I got the image going, I got my zikr (Divine
remembrance) down.’
But then they push within your heart, ‘No those whom you love they're not going to reach
that, you still got to go, you still got to do, you still got to think of more ways to
get the nazar (gaze) and attention of Sayyidina Muhammad ﷺ.’
So one reminder for us tonight then is, ‘We do more.’
Every day try to push and challenge ourselves to do more not only for ourselves but for
those souls that we love and we can't imagine a paradise without all those souls to be present.
And can't imagine that people to be in difficulty and we couldn't have done just a little bit
more to have helped them so that they could have come along and they could have joined
in that reality, there could have been another person who was brought to their attention
that reality.
So alhamdulillah it gives us a reason and an immense push within our soul and our heart
to continue struggling and people to struggle to do and do as much as they can for this
love and for the attention of Allah (AJ), the attention of Sayyidina Muhammad ﷺ inshaAllah.
Subhana rabbika rabbal ‘izzati ‘amma yasifoon, wa salaamun ‘alal mursaleen, walhamdulillahi
rabbil ‘aalameen.
Bi hurmati Muhammad al-Mustafa wa bi siri Surat al-Fatiha.