Juz 21: Allah Is The Author of History | Sr. Sarah Sultan | Season 7

What does it truly mean to live your truth? Sr. Sarah Sultan unpacks the nature of truth and how we ground ourselves in an unchanging reality, challenging the idea of following feelings over revelation.

Names of Allah mentioned: Al-Lateef, Al-Shakoor, Al-Haqq, Al-Aliyy, Al-Kabeer

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:05

In today's world, that we often hear people saying, I'm living my truth. A lot of times we end up chasing false quote unquote truths. They are not truths at all.

SPEAKER_01 0:15

You know, like when kids be like, Man, he's the truth. Or, you know, like or they'll say, What's the other he's him? What does it mean when they say he's him or he's the truth, right? That means that that person showed up on the court or showed up wherever they did in a way that like they cannot be denied. All right, well, of course, when it comes to Allah Azzawajal, he is always al-haq. He is the truth, no matter what.

SPEAKER_00 0:36

And that's what makes Islam so beautiful because it is submission only to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that's what I think made me come into Islam.

SPEAKER_01 0:49

Asanaam alaikum, rahmatalikat everyone. Welcome back to Quran 30 for 30. Alhamdulillah Brahmeen. We now enter into the most precious and blessed of nights of the last ten nights of Ramadan. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala accept them from you all. May Allah Azzaal allow you all and all of us to find Laylatul Qadr and to be embraced by Allah's mercy on that special night. And may Allah Azzaal accept all the good deeds that have been done thus far and forgive all of the sins before Allah Amin. I want to remind you all, this is the time in which we truly count on you, Bidn Naita'ah, to contribute. What you can do, inshaAllah Ta'ala, is go ahead and plug in any donation, inshaAllah Ta'ala, for the last 10 nights of Ramadan, and that will automate throughout the last 10 nights, Bidna Naita'a, and this is a major source of support for the work of Yaqeen. And so by doing so, think about how many lives, how many hearts you are changing, how many people you're connecting to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, all of that being from your scale of good deeds, B'idn al. So please do inshaAllah ta'a whatever amount it is, there is no insignificant amount, uh, and we need your dua's as well for acceptance. May Allah Azza reward you all, and I pray that uh we're able to continue to benefit you by the permission of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and we certainly benefit from your dua's, your feedback and your support. Uh with that, Alhamdulillah, we have with us Sister Sarah Sultan Alhamdulillah from Houston. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless you and elevate you. Allah. I was sharing um with her that subhanAllah, that one of the early books, might be the earliest book publication that we actually had was uh the the book Your Lord Has Not Forsaken You with yourself and Sister Najwa. And subhanAllah, that book I've actually been giving it to people in prison. Um printing it out and and giving it to them, and they've they've come back with how much they love that book and how much comfort they found in it, and that has been the case. So may Allah reward you for that uh work, you and Sister Najwa. And also, of course, um the series we did a few years ago about attaching to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, very relevant to this year's uh series as well, how Ibrahim alayam teaches us how to connect to Allah Azza in different vulnerabilities and everything else that you're doing. Um may Allah Azza reward you, and may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala reward your family. May Allah Azza allow it to be a source of comfort and acceptance for you. Allah Ameen. Allah ma'am. Is there anything you'd like to share about the work that you're doing, the work that's in the pipeline?

SPEAKER_02 3:07

Well, Jazak alakhir, first I j want to convey my gratitude that you're sharing our book with um just people who are so incredible that I can't believe that you know ha them have reading my words if I can get one dot, if Najwa and I and our families can get one dot from them from them, we're just so so grateful. And my Allah has to protect them and free them and elevate them in status and in ranks. Um and I'm gonna tell Najwa that she's gonna be so appreciative to hear that too, inshallah. Um in terms of the work that I'm doing, Alhamdulillah, I'm really grateful to continue to work with Yaheen. Um Najwa and I are uh co-writing a parenting series right now. We're I think about three papers in.

SPEAKER_01 3:48

Alhamdulillah.

SPEAKER_02 3:49

Um Alhamdulillah, and it's about raising children who are connected to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, um, who grow in uh in strong uh Muslim identity uh to be able to face the trials of this world, the trials of the next, um, to raise them in in that way. Um and then alhamdulillah, I'm blessed to do the work that I do with Al-Mahrib um institute, the the classes and the videos that I'm able to record with them too. So I'm grateful for those opportunities, alhamdulillah.

SPEAKER_01 4:17

Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless you and put barak in it all on. I mean, Mr. Sarah, really quick, is there a favorite name of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that you have?

SPEAKER_02 4:25

Yes. Um, okay, it's a uh it's very hard to pick one, but it's a tie between two. So the first is Al Um Al-Latif, which is the subtly kind, the gentle, guiding hand of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, where like we see it in the story of Yusuf alayhi salam, where in the end he calls Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala al-Latif after everything that he's been through, where he is put in the well by his brothers, he is sold into slavery, he is imprisoned, he is um he is uh lied about by someone of high status. And then all of this culminates in the end of his story to him being in one of the highest positions in the land. And if only one step had been missed, then he wouldn't have gotten that position. And that is the subtly kind uh nature of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and the way that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala uses his like gentleness to guide us. So sometimes we we don't realize the grand scheme, like the tapestry that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is creating for us. Um and when plans, mishaps happen, we we find them really unfortunate. But in the end, that's actually creating the trajectory that we need for success. So that's one of my favorite names. The other one is eshakur, because as a mom, knowing that I have the appreciation of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, even if there's no appreciation elsewhere, um, I find it, I find it very powerful also for intention, you know, that when you know that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala appreciates what you do, it allows you to do things without needing without needing that validation or appreciation from people. So uh so those are my two favorites, alhamdulillah.

SPEAKER_01 5:57

Alhamdulillah Al-Brahmeen, we are in just 21. And subhanAllah actually fits the uh nature of the book that you all wrote. Uh you know, last juz, there's a lot of ailahun ma'a. Is there another God beside Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? And the things that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala does for us on an individual level that no one else could do, and the things that Allah does for this universe that no one else could do, and the way that we call out to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, desperation and darkness, and he's always there, a ilaun ma'a, which is both is there any God besides Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and would you want a God besides Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala because of who Allah is to you and what he can be to you. This juz subhanAllah was thinking about something entirely different. I'm going to frame it Bidn Dahi ta'ala with this one sentence. Allah Azzawajal is the author of history. Allah is the author of history. Why? Because if you read this juz, it goes from Al-Ankabut and then Surah Room, right? Luqman, as-sajda, and then to Al-Ahzab. So from the closing of Surat al-anqabut, but really you're looking at Surat al-Rum to Surah al-Ahzab. So if the last juz is more on like a personal level of ilahun ma Allah, is there any God beside Allah that could have done this or that could do this for you? You also look at history. Is there any God beside Allah that is privy, al-Latif, to everything that is happening, and that is controlling everything that is happening, and that anticipates and waits and knows the outcomes and knows what is coming and is always on the side of the believers. So let's kind of just sit with this for a little bit, inshaAllah ta'a, then we can we can have a brief discussion about Ibidnana, and then we'll get into a very specific ayah. Uh these surahs are the Aliflam memes, they're part of the Lawa meme that were revealed in Mecca. They kind of come one off after the other. I teach tafsir sur to Sajdah with al-Mhhrib, and so we sort of talk about this grouping of surahs. They're very um, you know, pronounced with the power of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Like these surahs, Allah, is really putting us in our place, like constantly as humanity, right? Um, you need to expect test, you need to expect trial, you need to expect that there are going to be times where you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, and none of that matters because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's promise is true, and Allah is gonna bring you out of it. And the focus should be on your sajda, you're humbling yourself to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Collectively, what does it look like as an ummah when we're in sajda? Collectively, right? An ummah that submits itself to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, submits itself to his will, submits itself to his power. But then there's one connection that I was thinking about, subhanAllah. It starts off with Surah Surah. The Romans thought they were done, right? The Romans thought they were done. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gave them victory over the Persians when they thought they were done. And the end of the juzeh, Surah al-Ahzab, where the Muslims thought they were done, in the Khandak, in the trench. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala showed them the light, not just outside of the trench, but a light that spreads throughout the entire world through the hand of the Prophet. That you are not done. This is in fact the beginning of your victory. And indeed, after Khandak, there's a turn that takes place, a very palatable turn that takes place. What comes next in terms of the major instance are Hudaybiyah, right? Victory over the hypocrites on the inside and those that that betrayed them on the inside, Benin Quridah and then, you know, of course, I'm skipping some events in between, but Hudaybiyah, and Hudaybiyah was a fath. It was a great conquest and opening. And of course, it preceded the great opening of uh of Mecca, Fath Mecca. Now, subhanAllah, also with the Romans and the Persians, Allah said, Fi bid al-Aisaneen, that it's between three and nine years. If you actually read what happened between those three and nine years, there were openings that were happening before the big opening, right? And that's how victory actually takes place. It's never just this one boom and then there is an opening. It goes from uh place to place. And so Allah Azwajal is the author of history and he presents himself as such in this particular juz. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala promises when the Romans will be defeated, but he also says, Yabda ul-kah, thumay'idu. He originates creation and then he repeats it. One of the fawad, one of the benefits of that is he repeats history as well. Right? You know, one set of heroes and villains dies, the next set comes. One generation dies, another generation comes. Their problems and their promises are eerily like reminiscent of the generations of the past, and through that the lessons are timeless. And so Allah Azzah says, Yabda ul khakathumayur eidu, and then he also says, that he has the knowledge of the hour, that it's not just history that Allah knows, Allah knows the hour, and no one else knows the hour, right? So it's like he takes you to the very beginning and he takes you to the very end and commands you to just be in a state of submission everywhere in between. And that is his promise to us that if we do so, that he will make of us uh a great ummah. So Shaykh Abdullah, I'd love for you to start inshaAllah. Any reflections you have on that bidna and then uhstada salah.

SPEAKER_00 11:08

Yeah, it's beautiful. I mean, like how just when pondering over Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and his greatness and how he is the originator of all things, and how when you look at history in and of itself, how Allah creates time, and then he creates, as he says, you know, Watilk al-Ayam al Dawulhabin anas, and these are the days that we cause to repeat one another. And it's for us to know more about ourselves individually, personally, but then collectively as an ummah. We have to look at ourselves as an ummah and then see what are we doing within this time that Allah has created. Firstly recognizing that He is the creator of time, and then seeing how we are acting in accordance to that knowledge. So when we see what has happened with the Romans, we see what has happened with the Prophet throughout history, then we look at what's happened through ourselves and see what are those things that are consistent in the ways that they responded to the taqdier of Allah, to the creation of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that is foundationally speaking, our belief in Him, our creed, our connection to Him. Firstly, our knowledge of Him, and then how do we respond to that knowledge? That's what I think is the most important aspect of history. And this is why Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us within these qasas, these stories, they're ibrah, they're a lesson. And the lessons are not just to be something that is for education, but for enrichment, initially spiritual enrichment. And that's what I think is so beautiful that when we look at history, we repeat what was got from it, and then we learn from what needs needed work from the creation, which also as a result reminds us that Allah is one that is perfect and we are not, right? So that's what's that's a reflection that I have from beautifully. I'm doing suaklah there.

SPEAKER_02 12:36

You know, the what you were saying about um Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala putting us in our place in these in these surahs, it's it's incredible because it you know, in a lot of the Quran, we um we we see Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala talking about his creation, his signs, and for us to open our eyes and to reflect on them, right? And that only those who are righteous are actually going to be able to see those signs and um and reflect on them. And so um I the verse that I have for today is exactly this is exactly Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala putting us in our place where in um Surah Luqman he says, uhil birthabir. And so Allah here is saying that that is because Allah is the ultimate truth. He is Al-Haq, and what they invoke besides him is falsehood, and Allah is the most high and the all great. And just in this short verse, we see three incredibly powerful names of Allah that all put us in our place, right? We see Al-Hak that Allah is the ultimate truth, and Al-Ali, that he's the most high, and Al-Kabir, that he is the most great. And when we understand them, we look at the context of where they're showing up in this juz, in this surah, and just before this verse, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is reminding us of his power. He is telling us how he alternates the night and the day, how he resurrects and creates, how he commands the sun and the moon. And then he says that he is Al-Haq, the ultimate truth. And when I read this verse, the first thing that popped into my head, because you know, a lot of times when we hear the word truth, in today's world, we often hear people saying, I'm living my truth. You know, I'm I'm just living my truth. This is my personal truth. And a lot of times we end up chasing false quote-unquote truths. They are not truths at all. And we we chase false comforts, false refuges instead of prioritizing Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala over everything. And so when he tells us that he is al-haq, that he is the truth, it is something that is so powerful because when we submit to Allah, when we humble ourselves to Allah, we anchor ourselves in a reality that doesn't change. We anchor ourselves in stability when the world is constantly in motion and constantly changing, subhanAllah. And so when people say I'm living my truth, usually what they mean is I'm doing what feels good right now. I'm living in accordance with my emotion, right? And I'm not living in accordance with revelation. And it reminded me of the verse where Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, Have you seen the one who takes his desires as his God in Surah Al-Furqan? Um, because do we consult our feelings first or do we consult Allah first? And you know, as a therapist, I get it, feelings are important. I view feelings as very important, you know, but they're not the most important. And sometimes, sometimes we have to put our feelings aside to do what's right. We have to put our comfort aside to choose what Allah wants for us. And so allowing our feelings to become our guide, that's us choosing our ego and putting our ego above what Allah uh wants for us rather than actually submitting our ego to Allah. And that's what Iblis did, right? When Allah commands him to bow down to Adam, and he decides, I don't want to. That doesn't feel good because you made him from clay and you made me from fire. I'm better than him. So it doesn't feel right. That's not my personal truth that I should bow down to this man. But he prioritized his understanding, his rationale over Allah. And that is the essence of arrogance, right? And when Rasul was asked about arrogance, one of the ways he defined it was it is rejecting the truth, right? Because Allah is al-al-haq, right? Rejecting the truth of placing the self above um Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And so I I want to pause there before I I talk a little bit more about some thoughts I have, inshallah, to hear your thoughts.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

There's a lot of float and jewels there, masAllah. I mean, uh I love how you mentioned uh al-haq and you mentioned uh how people say their truths, especially in a day where it's a day of hedonism and and uh you know people just saying, you know, we just follow your feelings and do what you feel and how you feel, and that's your truth and it's subjective, right? So, you know, and uh the name Al-Haqah, some scholars say it means a sabbat, that which is firm and doesn't move, it's mus it's mustakiryan. But when you look at Baltil, you know, Allah says what they call other to other than him, it's Baltil. It's not it's not Thabit, it's not firm, it's not that which will stay forever, it's not timeless. And that's beautiful how you're mentioning that, because if we were just to rely on our feelings, it would be we would be destroyed. There's n that ruins the essence of Udiya, of servitude, because servitude from servitude as a part of servitude or within the process of servitude is jihadunfs, is fighting the self. Right? The self, the nafs, which some scholars mention that there's three different types or three different scenarios of the nafs, which we won't go into, but one of those is to where you know the nafs and maraton bisu, the the self, the part of the self that calls you consistently to do evil or to do that which is not ultimately in your benefit, because immediately we may see the immediate benefit, but our fitr knows that okay, this may not be the best for me, but the hawah, the desires, the feelings that you talked about cause us to indulge upon those things, which we if we were to sit and think about Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and ponder over where is this going to take me, right? Where is this going to take me in this life, in the next week, the next month, the next year, or in the afterlife, which the Muslims are pillars of his or her belief, we would say, okay, we would fight ourselves to do the things that's better for ourselves. So when you realize Allah al Haqq, it reminds me as well as um how Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says uh in the had al-Quran, Yahdi Lilati Hiya, akwam. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says that this Quran calls that which is most upright. And this is, you know, seal tafdil, meaning that this is the best. That mean doesn't mean that there are not other ways that you may view as upright, and there may not be other ways, there are other ways that may be upright in reality, but the Quran is the best. So when Allah is al-haq, he is calling you, he is a truth, and he is calling you to the truth over every and anything that you may view as true. But if it's contradictory to what the truth has revealed in the system that he's revealed, that's where we have to do some self-reviews, some self-renewal, some purification of the self. And the best purification is understanding who Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is and trying your best consistently, consistently of that purification through actions and through remembrance with all the limbs, the tongue, the heart, and the limbs as well. So that's a beautiful. I like how you really just you know just unpacked that name. It's uh may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala make it easy upon us.

SPEAKER_01 19:34

It's really interesting that like even when you when you uh translate this to like what it means societally, what is uh true but without moral objectivity today was not true right last generation. Right? Like when you say that alhaq means that he is a thabit, that he's he's firm, uh falsehood is so trendy. There's trend versus truth, right? So falsehood is based on trend, and there are all sorts of factors that create that truth for the moment, right? Society sets different standards. Um there are people that profit off of those different standards. There are um you know all sorts of incentives to believe this to be the truth because you benefit from taking this as a truth, right? So I think about someone that was deeply devoted to an idol in Mecca, you know, you benefit from that. You don't really believe that the idol has power, but you benefit from that. But when Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, Who al haq uh and and you know subhanahu wa ta'ala we think about arrogance, like most people when the Prophet said batrul haqq wahmtur nas to deny the truth and to look down upon people um or to belittle the people, which has which has a very specific um you know application here in this hadith. But the first one which is batrul haqq, like people don't usually think about that in terms of arrogance, right? Like the the person that completely denies revelation, denies the existence of God, but is humble and nice and courteous, people won't call that person arrogance. But there's no greater arrogance than denying the truth, right? Than denying your creator. Just like uh if a person denied their parents, it doesn't matter how good they are to everyone else, but if they treat their parents like you know, you know, like dirt, then at the end of the day, there's a denial, there's a component of denial um that is there as well. So Allah Azza elevates himself as as the truth that has multiple connotations. This also shows up in this in this juz that the promise of Allah, Allah does not betray his promise. So he is the truth, his promises are true. And til haqwaq wa kill haqwadi. Like it has all sorts of connotations that he is true, his promise is true, his reward is true, his meeting is true, his Jannah is true, his hellfire is true, the Prophet is true, right? So truth emanates from him. Like uh You know, like when kids be like, Man, he's the truth. Or, you know, like or or they'll say, What's the other he's him? What does it mean when they say he's him or he's the truth, right? That means that that person showed up on the court or showed up wherever they did in a way that like they cannot be denied. All right, well, of course, when it comes to Allah Azzawajal, he is always al-haq, he is the truth, no matter what, right? Uh subhanahu wa ta'ala. Subhanallah. So when you go through the rest of the ayah, Sister Sarah, like this pair at the end that that he is Al-Ali, Al-Kabir, uh, to pair that off with the most high, the most great, like what more do we derive from that?

SPEAKER_02 22:37

I think that it's one of the like I think that those two names being paired at the end makes it so much easier for us to accept Allah as Al-Haqq, as the truth, right? Because you know what you were um mentioning, Shaykh Abdullah, about quelling our desires. Ibn al-Qayyyah Imraimallah he says that whoever wishes to purify his heart must prefer Allah above his own desires, right? And so when we think of those moments where we decide that Allah is al-ali, he is the most high, that Allah is al-Kabir, that He is the most great. When we say Allahu Akbar insalah, we say Allah is greater. Greater than what? Greater than everything, right? So in those moments when you wake up for fajr and you get out of your warm bed, or you tell the truth, um, even though that truth might cost you, right? Or you walk away from a sin, even though you're you're like there's such an intense desire for it, those are the moments that you're accepting that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is higher than my ego, higher than myself, and I'm going to put him in that pos that position, and that he is greater, greater than everything that's standing in my way of worshiping him, and that his truth is the truth that I hold on to. So I think that those two names, when they're paired, they really, they really form an antidote for us against our our ego. And it really helps us to, you know, in the following verse in Surah Luqman, I love the way it transitions from al-haq, al-Ali, and Al-Kabir, that when we talk about the ego, it's all about me, myself, and I. It's all about looking inward. And the following verse, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, Do you not see that the ships sail through the sea by the grace of Allah so that He may show you His signs? And He is bringing our attention outward, externally, away from like the inside, the inners of our ego. And then He ends this verse by saying that surely in this are signs for those who are Sabbarin Shakur, the ones who are steadfast. Like sabr, I know people define as patience, but I think it's more perseverance, discipline, steadfastness, right? And shakur, the ones who are grateful. And those are two antidotes to our ego as well, to help us to be humble, right? Because you need, like sabr is an essential part of the equation to put Allah above your desires, to really decide that Allah is al-ali. And I, if I want any lofty status, then I turn to el ali. And shukr also is necessary because a lot of times we do something and we're like, you know, I did that. And we we pride ourselves on our capability, but where did that capability come from? It came from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And so shukr is another antidote to help us be humble and to realize that Allahu Akbar, right? Allah is greater than my ability, than any capability, because He is the source of that capability, right? And so when we tie those two names to al-haq, it makes us so much easier to accept the truth of Allah rather than the false, fleeting truths that we might have based on our desires, based on our feelings, because it really helps us to remember that Allah is higher than my ego, and I choose to have that supersede. My worship of Allah, my purpose in worshiping Allah supersedes whatever desire I have, and He is greater than any obstacle that might get in the way of me fulfilling that purpose.

unknown 26:04

Right, right, right.

SPEAKER_00 26:05

And that's why it's important, subhanAllah, to always subhanAllah, you know, the dhikr of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, even dhikr with the billian, as uh you know is mentioned, just always mentioning his names. And when you mention that name, you try your best through continuously mentioning that name to ponder over it. And when you ponder over it, you start to look at your life, and that's when the introspection takes place. And all this is a process. And that's you know, I used to always wonder, subhanAllah, when we at the end of the salawat, why is it 33 times? Why do we say it over and over and over and over again? And you know, subhanAllah, maybe not the first, second, third, or fifteenth time that you say it, but hopefully, eventually, especially after just finishing the salaw salah, you know, you you think of Allahu Akbar. What does that really mean, Yani? Subhanallah, glorification to Allah. What are the differences between the two? You know, Alhamdulillah, what's the difference between SubhanAllah and Alhamdulillah and Allahu Akbar? You know, in each one of these names has the sifatulu. You know, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is above all of these other forms of creation, above everything other than him, he is greater than that. And subhanAllah, when you think of that, Allah, as you mentioned in the next verse, he talks about his creation and what was mentioned about that when the you know Allah ends it with the asabr and shukr. You know, some scholars mentioned that when you're in the fulk in the in the Bahr, in the in the sea, that if there's the waves that are very, very strong and impactful and it's it's hitting you, whether literally or figuratively, you know, it will require what? It will require patience, the turbulence of life. But when the sea is in ikasha, when is there's the level of sake, when it's tranquil, that's when it's time for you to what? To show shukr. And in both times, you need to mention the names of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to bring forth that saqini in your heart or to make you more thankful, the tranquility in your heart from being patient, or to make you more thankful from what you are currently seeing. And that's why subhanAllah, when we look at look at these names of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in this particular situation where he's talking about what they call on his baltil, because the previous verses were we're speaking about how they made inkar of the bath, how they would deny resurrection and denying of these things. As you mentioned, denying what the prophet said, denying prophethood, and some of them knowing prophethood, but their desires still cause them to deny, whether it's the ego of them themselves or the tribe or whatever the case may be, you know, recognizing that Allah is the truth does take an element of taking from yourself and submitting to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that's the essence of Islam. And that's what makes Islam so beautiful because it is submission only to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And that's what I think made me come into Islam. You know what I'm saying? Everything else has a level of gr a level of greatness, whether I agree me internally, with my personal experience, with that thing, that person, that experience, or generally on a communal level, we may view this as great, but Allah is greater than all of it because He is the originator of it. He's the one that brought into existence and he can easily take it away.

SPEAKER_01 28:59

SubhanAllah, beautiful reflection. You know what I was thinking about subhanAllah, like Surah al-Luqman, even as Luqman al-Hakim is teaching his son adab, he's connecting every one of those small adab to the greatness of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Right? The way you talk, the way you walk, the way you carry yourself, that there is a humility that comes through submission to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the way you treat your parents, the way you treat everyone around you. Right. There's a humbling impact of that submission. And in Surat Sajda, right, in a Mayobin albi ayati na nadina, eda luki rubia, right? Like this imagery of like the revelation hitting a person, and they immediately fall in in humility in their in their worship, and they're uh you know, prostrating in their uh to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, bowing and prostrating to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And you look back at Iblis, right? His denial of the truth led his back to straighten up when he was commanded to bow and to prostrate. Right? So those things of Batrul Haq and Ramtun Nas are greatly connected. Batrul Haq, which is denial of the truth, is largely in the domain of ibadah, the domain of worship, and Ramtunas belittling people largely in the domain of character. And this just really does uh address uh both Jazakun Allah Khayram for coming uh and being a part of this and for your continuous work and helping people to make sense of uh the world around them and their feelings, and then channeling that to submission to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala reward you and elevate you. Shaqabdallah is always for the beautiful reflections and to everyone else, please keep us in your dua in these last 10 insha'Allah. And again, please do donate, insha'Allah, Ta'ala, whatever amount it's going to be in the link below.