Reminder always for myself ana abdukal 'ajeezu, dayeefu, miskinu, zhalim, wa jahl, and but for
the grace of Allah (AJ) that we are still in existence. The internet is a
devil’s playground and in that playground there’s an adab (manner) and
a way in which to manoeuvre through that satanic field - like a landmine.
If you follow it, alhamdulillah. If you don’t care for it, then that’s up to you.
But don’t later say that something happened and you got sidetracked. So, anytime you’re in the
devil’s playground - it’s extremely dangerous. When we ask that people who are
in that area and on those social medias, that our life is to keep the focus on the shaykh,
keep the focus on your teacher so that your focus is exactly like the sun and the moon. And the
shaykh’s focus is with his shaykh and the focus towards the reality of Sayyidina Muhammad ﷺ. And
you’ll learn in your life – just keep your focus, don’t deal with right and don’t deal with left.
This whole system is built to keep your focus, keep your focus because at any moment this life
of ours is like a toofan – like a tornado. That shaitan (satan) just want you, ‘Look,
look, look, look this way.’ And as soon as you distracted, it’s enough to grab the person and
they’re off in a different tangent, different way. So, then this teaching is for that understanding
that if you’re in those platforms, when the shaykh is posting something and this is the staff and the
admins are posting these teachings – our job is to go in and make a comment on the shaykh’s teaching.
So, this is the danger point. You make the comment, ‘Oh alhamdulillah. Thank you very much,’
and you’re out. And that was to show that you are participating in this virtual classroom
as if you’re in his zawiyah (spiritual school of Sufism) and he wants to see your face and he’s
looking at your face. And your expression and your non-expression, they go straight into your heart.
Same is you want to be recognized on social platform by the shaykh. So, then
you make your comment and that helps that post because of its algorithms and its interaction,
and you go out. Then there are people who are making comments on comments and that’s a
danger. And that’s, that’s where you start to go left and right. That you made a comment
and now somebody comes to comment on your comment and try to now build a familiarity with you.
And it could be a profile of a woman and you don’t know if it’s a woman or a man.
And it can have any type of profile image and what we call ‘Catfishing’ now. Can be some
little boy in India who chooses to have women’s face on their platforms and they just keep posting
on somebody’s post, because the concept of waswas (whispering) and shayateen (devils) is enough to
just ‘Phew, phew, phew’ [trying to get someone’s attention]. You’re focusing on something.
Somebody comes: ‘Hey man, hey man, hey man, hey what’s up, hey man…’
why? Because you’re focusing on something. So, it’s enough to just whisper that, ‘What?’
And now you’re now in a dialogue. So, then instead of now focusing on your shaykh anymore,
you’re like, ‘What? Oh, you like that comment. Oh, yeah thank you. You like here and then I
thank you,’ and then before you know it the two of you are continuously commenting on each other now.
Where that person now became the shaykh, you became the shaykh – you’re now
in a different relationship. You came into the devil’s playground to focus on your shaykh
and you made your comment, you got out and you listened to the event, you read the article, you
watched the video. The others are very defecant… very different and making comment on comments
trying to build relationships. On social media relationships - absolutely don’t need. You don’t
need a single friend in the internet world because you don’t know who you’re even dealing with. The
zawiyah – this group of people, they know each other. When Zeeshan posts, I know who Zeeshan is.
I know who Adam is even though he changes his profile pictures every now and then,
but I know what he is and what he’s doing. Right? So, we know each other. But internet
world – have no idea who’s people. Some person calls him ‘Ali Naqshbandi’ then he calls himself
‘Ali Daghestani.’ It’s like, ‘What?’ You have no right to use the Naqshbandi name, Daghestani name
other than your name what your dad, baba gave to you – that’s your name. Their names you need
permission from Mawlana Shah Naqshband (Q) to say that, ‘I’m Nurjan Naqshbandi.’ But you can’t just
do that and students can’t do that. Absolutely they can’t do that, why? Because imagine they put
themself named ‘Naqshbandi’ and they go putting all sorts of crazy posts and giving hearts to
women, chatting with this, chatting with that. And, ‘This is Naqshbandi is doing this? Who’s this
name that’s doing this?’ [People will say] So, its forbidden. So, then these are all these
traps and games that are happening on the internet because they think they’re coming towards learning
some of these pious teachings and following the shaykhs, because this is a way that they’re going
to disseminate into shaitan’s playground, haqqaiqs (realities). But not to take pious people and
drift them in the wrong direction. So, pious people enter very carefully. They enter into
this platform, they like the shaykh, they say, ‘Thank you very much – shukran, bye.
I’m out.’ Anyone comment on your comment - don’t reply, don’t get sidetracked now and build a
friendship and you post on their post, they post on your post and before you know it the two of
you are in a relationship commenting. One – the danger is now you lost the focus of the shaykh,
you’re too interested in if they’re commenting on your post and you’re commenting on their post.
So, you see how shaitan just flipped now, your focus is no longer with the shaykh and you’re
dealing on a side. And two – you don’t even know who you’re dealing with.
You haven’t seen the true face of the person and you don’t know what this relationship is,
and this is not a place that we’re encouraging relationships because we
don’t know which one is halal (permissible) and haram (forbidden) in this relationship.
So, this is not an encouragement for people to… who don’t know each other to start you know
commenting back and forth. And the reason why the shaykh is saying is because it’s on his posts
where the playgrounds are happening and people chatting and then commenting on things. So,
this is the adab of the tariqah (spiritual path), just like the adab at the center.
There’s no inter-mixing, there is no socializing at the centers,
everyone stays into their own platform. They come to the tariqah to learn, to build the good manner,
good characteristic and go home. Not to interact so much that they become affected by each other.
And Mawlana Shaykh (Q) used to describe that the students, he puts them in a bag and shakes them
because they coming to be cleansed. So, they come, they interact, they don’t like certain things and
that’s okay because that’s coming to polish the character. When you come and you interact, you’re
not happy with it, you get polished, you become… have a sabr and patience. But in the internet
world that’s something different. They don’t want the interaction. They don’t want people commenting
on people’s comments. Just make your own comment – original comment on the shaykh’s post. That way
you logged in, ‘I’m here, alhamdulillah. Thank you, bye,’ and out. And that becomes a grave
danger because you see all these interactions and people don’t even know who they’re dealing with.
And then these internet relationships and it could be female to female and all of a sudden,
‘I’m a refugee, help me to come.’ But what? Who’s that and why are they telling you they’re
a refugee and they want you to go where? And they want to come to your place? And you haven’t heard
those announcements at the airport that, ‘Did you pack your bags and don’t take anyone’s bags,
and any announced, unannounced bags please call security.’ It’s one of those types of
things that somebody is coming to you from where, and why do they want help from you
that they just met five minutes ago? So, means it’s a devil’s playground and don’t play in it.
Just come to learn the haqqaiqs and then share the post so that we come against shaitan because you
never know who reads the post and comes towards guidance. But we’re not supposed to be in there
playing and making everything dirty and get involved in the dirtiness – it will destroy
everything. It will destroy the faith, it will destroy the rizq (sustenance), it will destroy
everything. Everything that Prophet ﷺ brought, the internet is the most dangerous zone of it because
you’ll be breaking Shari’ah (Divine law). You’ll be breaking all of Prophet’s ﷺ laws and rules and
as a result every rizq will be stopped, every faiz (downpouring blessings) will be stopped,
every barakah (blessing) will be stopped. Because the physical was easy to understand, ‘Oh,
that’s that side, this this side,’ and they don’t. Internet - nobody knows whose side is what side,
and all that shaitan wants is that the person keeps stepping on the wrong side – they broke
the Shari’ah. And as a result, they begin to anger Prophet ﷺ and they lose all barakah,
faiz and everything. So, they stay away from it. They post and they get out and they keep
themself to be safe in very difficult days because all that shaitan wants is – enter into a sin,
this protection leave you and these rocks begin to hit you. And we are a people who know that
difficulty is everywhere, we want Divine Grace and Divine Majesty to be protecting
and dressing and blessing. We pray that Allah (AJ) inspire our hearts towards always goodness
and to avoid any type of thing that we find any doubt in it – don’t step into it and step
away from it. And also, people can support, people can give gifts to the shaykh, people
can support and show that they have a love. People can get the books, post the books, make a review
for the book. People can go to the sites and support the sites. All of that system
makes all of this to be possible. It’s not running for free and there’s no government that’s
supporting us. Every government is actually trying to shut it down. YouTube doesn’t let us even to
have our donation button work. So, no they’re not interested in it. This is just by the hearts of
people. If their hearts are touched by it, they have a love for it then alhamdulillah, they build
that relationship. What you do in the physical zawiyah, because this is the adab of the tariqah
that the shaykh and the physical students they know they come, they give a gift and they say,
‘Shaykh pray for me.’ And this was the teaching that we taught before that if you can find these
Ahlul Bayt (Holy family of Prophet ﷺ) and give your love to them, give your support to them,
keep the companionship with that reality then whatever Allah (AJ) dressing them and wherever
their spirituality and physicality is going – Allah (AJ) give a share in that reality
to those people whom support and love. The support to the charity is something that is
mandated through our rizq. What we owe from what we made, we have to give food and water and drink
and support. The two are not the same. Supporting the shaykh is not charity. He’s not allowed to
take sadaqah (charity), they’re all family of Sayyidina Muhammad ﷺ. It’s called ‘Hediah’ and a
gift is a gift that builds love and admiration and respect. Say, ‘For the work that you do,
the character that you have, I want to give this gift to the hand of Ahlul Bayt,’ and alhamdulillah
this builds a relationship, a love. Because now the zawiyah is virtual, that’s why
then that service is online. That they can do that support through online. Then from the rizq and the
sustenance that we make we have a share that has to go back to people to feed them, to give water
to them, to have food programs, truck programs and all of the masjid support – all of those
things. So, this builds the relationship, this builds the community, this builds the strength of
our community because our community is very strong alhamdulillah. Allah (AJ) positioned us for these
events. Right? When everybody was running around and travelling and making fitna (confusion), we
were building a media engine and producing videos and everything. And Allah (AJ) then send
onto this world a shutdown and then what did everybody want? Media! And so alhamdulillah,
the beautiful sounds that come out with the quality of the sound that comes out, the beautiful
videos that they’re putting on every Saturday with all the graphics, all the producing and all the
production – that puts out a message and puts out a message with a photo and a photo is like
a thousand messages in itself. So, the editing process of these talks is an immense blessing
that goes out to people to be a knowledge in a digestible format – easy to absorb that even
the children like to watch the Saturday programs with all the editing. Because you take the talk,
you break it up with some images, some beautiful ambient sound and everything alhamdulillah,
comes out. So, these are… these are, Allah (AJ) had prepared us for that day. What we talked about
the old lady at the beginning - you prepare, you prepare, you don’t know why we’re doing it. It’s
like building a Noah’s ship and there was no rain. We’re building all these videos and a day would
come when Allah (AJ) say, ‘A day would come where people going to want.’ And I told you before, how
many years we said before that nobody comes to get ta’weez (prayer for protection) but a day is going
to come they’re going to be pounding on the door to get a ta’weez. Because everything was great,
when everything’s great you don’t think about your akhirah (hereafter). Oh, lo and behold,
death at your door – you want to get ten ta’weezs on your neck, you put sticker on every wall,
because this is the business of akhirah. We’re in the spirituality of death and the grave.
We don’t make sense to people here. But if you’re about to put your
foot on that side, ahlan wa sahlan (welcome and be at ease), we’re here for you [everybody laughs].
Because that’s our life; is that side not this side. So, the people heavy on this side,
they don’t care for these things, they’re not interested in these things. But when the
earth is beginning to shake like death is coming everywhere, oh, of course, ‘Where is that video?
Where is this thing? Where is this thing?’ This organization is spreading out turbans in hundreds
are now wearing Ahle Sunnah (People of Prophetic Tradition), wearing the 'eimama (turban), putting
ta’weez on, putting stickers on, putting all these things on. Every event that comes that
app [Muhammadan Way App] goes out to 20,000 people to find their awrad (daily practice).
Allah (AJ) gave this honour. Who else is saying? Muharram came, Muharram left nobody
said anything - what to do, what to recite. Alhamdulillah, it was all positioned there,
the app is there, it’s telling everybody. So, they click on it, they like us,
they don’t like us – they’re using the app to find out what the awrad for Muharram was,
so alhamdulillah. So, the entity is busy, we’re busy. So, when they’re asking for support it’s
not for retirement, it’s for the projects and all of the things that the entity is doing.
All the food, now we have two trucks. We have a truck that running in Vancouver
and a truck running in Los Angeles, and Asim’s active in Los Angeles and Haji Hayat active in
Vancouver, and all the brothers that are helping. And they’re picking up food now left and right.
That Allah (AJ) now throwing in muffins and breads and soups and alhamdulillah.
You build it and Allah (AJ) will send because these are the nations of plenty but from one
source it doesn’t get to the mouth of the poor. So, all you need is a van to drive them
back and forth and pick it up. So, alhamdulillah Allah (AJ) dress us. By means of these actions,
these are a protection for ourself and for our family for a day in case we don’t have food, we
don’t have water, we don’t have shelter. And all the other actions build a love and the connection.
You don’t have to focus on twenty people, just be the moon and focus on one. Learn your way,
build the relationship - that you’re solid. You know that in time of difficulty
you’ve built a relationship and the prayer of that one is a pushtagar – is right behind you.
Said that, that ‘I know behind me is a fierce lion, my back is solid.’
Do you feel that way? Alhamdulillah because your love and the way that we interact,
but could you imagine living through this life where I don’t - what the heck is behind me.
So, our life is about this whole system that I built up, this love I built,
this participation I built – I feel my back is solid. There are fierce lions behind me,
right behind. If you’re trying to get to me, you have to go through all of them – and that’s
tariqah!
Subhana rabbika rabbal ‘izzati ‘amma yasifoon, wa salaamun ‘alal mursaleen,
walhamdulillahi rabbil ‘aalameen. Bi hurmati Muhammad al-Mustafa wa bi siri Surat al-Fatiha.
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