- One of the most profound statements I ever heard was,
"Goal minus doubt equals reality."
Basically, if you have a goal in mind
and this has a worldly component,
but to us we jannahfy it.
If you have a goal in mind,
the less doubt that you have,
the more that that's your current reality.
And one of the things that can happen to a person
is that if they're unsure of Jannah,
then they might get tempted
by the so-called Jannah of this world, right?
Like you might think to yourself,
"Am I really holding back?
Am I really missing out
because of something that might not even be there?"
But when you build that Yaqeen,
that certainty in your hearts,
not only do you no longer feel like you're missing out,
but you look forward to realizing
what others are actually missing out on.
Umar Ibn Khattab radiAllahu ta'ala Anhu
walks in upon the Prophet SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam
in this very famous narration.
And Rasulullah SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam
The greatest man, in fact the greatest creation
to ever live, rises from his bed.
And his bed SallAllahu Alaihi Wasallam
is made of these branches,
and he has just this pillow that's palm stuffed.
And when he rises from his bed,
the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam
who should be living like a king in this world, right,
when he rises from his bed,
he has marks all over his back because of
how uncomfortable he is SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam.
And his 'hujaraat', what are they?
They're smaller than probably
what some of your closets are.
And Umar radiAllahu Anhu starts to cry,
and Rasulullah SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam says,
"Why are you crying, oh Umar?
Why are you crying?"
And he says, Ya Rasulullah
"I've seen the palaces of Kisra in Persia,
I've seen the palaces of Caesar in Rome,
and you're so much more deserving of that!"
And the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam says,
"Are you in doubt, oh Umar?
Aren't you pleased that they have this Dunya?
And we have the Akhirah?
Let 'em have this Dunya.
We have the Hereafter.
We don't care about these palaces.
We care about the palaces of Paradise.
We're okay".
And there's something SubhanAllah
about knowing that there's something
that awaits you, to where you won't strain your eyes
over the things that people have been temporarily given.
You don't even know if they're even happy with those things.
So, you don't strain your eyes
at their so-called happiness.
Nor do you strain your eyes at their possessions
because, this Dunya
as the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam said,
"Is a prison for the believer
and a Paradise for the disbeliever".
Now, that doesn't mean
that the believer is unfulfilled like a prisoner,
but that means that the believer
is restricting themselves for the Hereafter,
and the disbeliever has nothing
to look forward to except for torment.
And so, they're going to try to make this Jannah
as much as they can here,
and they're going to fail.
Now, when you go to your grave,
remember that the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam said
that you will not just be shown your place in Paradise
bi-ithnillahi ta-a'la
which is your actual place,
but you will also be shown your place in Hellfire
had you been one of the occupants of Hellfire.
And when Allah Subh'anahu Wa Ta-A'la
turns you away from that place,
it makes you appreciate your Paradise more and say,
"Alhamdulillah! I didn't end up there".
Now, the opposite is also unfortunately true,
that people that could have had Paradise
are shown it in their grave
that that could have been your garden.
But instead this is your chamber
because Allah Subh'anahu Wa Ta-a'la gave you fair warning.
Now, for us, when inshaAllah Ta-a'la
we commit ourselves to this,
and we believe with certainty in Allah,
and in the Hereafter,
and what he's promised us of the Hereafter.
We have our opportunity now
to not just earn what we have earned
but also to claim the spoils of those people
who could have earned Jannah as well.
Now, what do I mean by that?
This is SubhanAllah a powerful concept
that we have in the Quran and the Sunnah
of the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam,
that you're walking through this life,
and you might feel like you're left out
of the things that other people have.
But on the Day of Judgment,
they're the ones that are looking at you left out.
Allah Subh'anah Wa Ta-A'la says
Ulaaa'ika humul waarisoon
Allazeena yarisoonal Firdawsa hum feehaa khaalidoon
that verily they are the inheritors
who shall inherit the Firdous,
and they shall dwell therein forever.
What does the inheritance here speak to?
Some of the scholars said
that inheritance speaks to how effortless
it comes to you, right.
That it comes to you just like inheritance comes to you.
Easy, passed down to you.
But some of the scholars said, "This is speaking
about what the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam said,
that no one of you who lives in this life
does not have two positions:
a home in Hellfire and a home in Paradise.
The believer has his home in Jannah,
and his home in Hellfire.
And once he occupies or she occupies
that house in Jannah,
the house in Hellfire is demolished.
So, SubhanAllah think about it right now,
this very moment,
there's a home in Jahannam with your name on it,
and there is a home in Jannah with your name on it.
And once you InshaAllah ta-ala inhabit the home in Jannah,
that home that belonged to you
in the Hellfire is demolished.
Now, what about the homes of the people
who go to Hellfire instead?
And you wanna make sure
that you're not one of those "Could have beens in Paradise".
So, you're walking around Jannah bi-ithnillahi ta-ala,
and you see these palaces
that could have been for certain people
had they responded
to the call of Allah Subh'anahu Wa ta-a'la,
but instead you will inherit their homes.
And this is exactly what Allah Subh'anahu wa Ta-a'la
is talking about in the Quran,
and what the Prophet SallAllahu Alahihi Wasallam
is mentioning.
That you don't just inherit your own share,
but you inherit the share
of the disbelievers in Paradise as well.
And this is a reward
for when you used to proceed through this life,
and you used to abstain from certain things,
and feel left out.
So, now you take your share,
and the share of those
who rejected the call in Al Jannah,
their palaces, their gardens,
and the things that they could have had.
And Saeed bin Jubair says
that it's not just the disbelief and the belief,
but imagine how many Ramadans they missed.
Imagine how many Laylat Al-Qadrs they missed.
Imagine how many Salaahs they missed,
had they believed how much reward
they could have had for their zakaat.
All of that is now given to the believers
who actually abided by those commands.
And Allah Subh'anahu wa Ta-a'la says,
Watilkal jannatul lati uritstumuha bima kuntum ta'malun
"This is the Paradise
which you have been made to inherit
because of the deeds that you used to do".
You know, SubhanAllah when you think
about the things that we sacrificed here
and we missed out on,
we say, "Let them have it,
we will take their opportunities in Paradise".
Now, notice here that Allah Subh'anahu Wa ta-a'la says,
bi maa kuntum ta'alamoon
"Because of that, which you used to do".
And the scholars say that if you think about it,
is anyone in Jannah
because of what they used to actually do?
But would it feel like Jannah
if you felt like it was given to you undeservingly?
So, while the people in Hellfire are being told,
"Didn't you get the signs?
You could have responded".
The people in Jannah are being told,
"You see this glass of wine
that you have in your hand,
you see this palace that you now inhabit,
you see this garden that you now strolling?
That's because of what you used to do".
Because Allah Subh'anahu Wa Ta-A'la who created us knows
that we need to feel like we accomplished something.
We need to feel like we earned something.
So, while none of us enter Jannah,
except by the mercy of Allah Subh'anahu Wa ta-a'la ,
we are told constantly in Jannah
that this is a reward for that which you used to do.
And if you think about the believer
as they're going through this life.
SubhanAllah, How many times will you be made to feel
like what you're doing is not worth it?
All this religious stuff, all this abstaining,
the way that you carry yourself,
the way that you dress,
all these things that you hold yourself back from,
is it really worth it?
Like, can't you be a little funner?
Can't you do a little bit more here?
And in Jannah, you're being told
that everything that you abstain from,
here is a better reward for it,
and everything that you did
when other people thought it wasn't worth it,
look how worth it it is now.
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