Juz 27: The Night You Give Everything | Sh. Abu Bakr Zoud | Season 7

 “Bring the night to life.”

There are no nights like the last ten of Ramadan. Sh. Abu Bakr Zoud reminds us how vital it is to increase our worship in these blessed days. Push yourself beyond what feels comfortable. Ask yourself, “Can I do more?” 

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:05

They will be in a seat of honor, in a place of truth. Paradise was called Makqa Dil Subq because they were people of truth. They were honest in their relationship with Allah. The only way to be honest with Allah is to prefer what Allah loves over that which you desire and that which you love.

SPEAKER_00 0:25

He is truly Al-Kareem. Truly Al-Kareem. He gave you the provision in the first place. And he's guaranteeing you not just a reward in the hereafter, but he's guaranteeing you as well that you will not be deprived or be deficient because of giving for his sake in this world.

SPEAKER_01 0:42

You should always ask yourself, is it possible for me to give more? Have I given more in this first night, the second night, the third night? To where when after Ramadan is over, you feel a level of sakeina, you feel a level of tranquility, knowing that you've pushed yourself.

SPEAKER_00 1:25

I want to remind you all, inshallah ta'ara, please keep us in your dua. And also, please, on this night, this is actually the single most night in which we receive support for Yaqeen. It's that crucial, inshaAllah ta'ara. So on this blessed night, and all of the last ten are blessed. And what might be Laylatul Qadr, please do, inshaAllah ta'ara, donate at the link below. Even if you've already donated, insha'Allah ta'ara, please do support the work. We hope that you're seeing the benefit that is coming through this, and we hope that you want to invest in it, bid the Nahi Ta'arah some more. Alhamdulillah Brahmeen. Uh tonight we are joined by Wallahiya, beloved brother, beloved friend, Shaykh Abu Bakr Zaoud from Australia. I've been wanting to have Shaykh Abu Bakr here for a very long time. I think he doesn't like Shaykh Abdullah-Dur maybe. How long have you had how's the first time you met Shaykh Abu Bakr? Are you serious? So I I've I've had the blessing of of m knowing Shaykh Abu Bakr now for over a decade, I believe. And um, you know, the benefit from his work online is tremendous. Sometimes I'll be thinking about talking about something, and I'll find that you already covered it and covered it in much more depth than I could ever cover it in Allah. Sheikh Abu Bakr uh Shaykh Abdullah brought it up right before we started that you were given ijazah by Shaykh Hudaifi.

SPEAKER_02 2:43

I know. No. That happened in Al-Madina. Subhanallah, remember when I first uh began my studies in Al-Madina in 2006, I uh approached uh Shaykh al-Hhudaifi directly and I said to him, uh Sheikh, I am from Australia and I want to uh take an ijazah from you. So he said to me, What Kulia are you in? Which college? I said, I'm in uh Kulia tulla. I'm learning the Arabic language, and afterwards I'm going to go to the faculty of Quran. So he said to me, In your fourth year, in the last year, come back to me. So I took that. And after five years, so that's two years Arabic and then four years, three years of the college, I went to him and I said, Sheikh, you told me five years ago that I should come back to you in my last year of Qulliatul Qur'an. He looked at me like that and he said, uh, join us in the halaqa after al-Mhrib. So I entered into the room and I began to recite on him from Surah T-Fatiha all the way until I finished Quran and I took any jaza from him.

SPEAKER_00 3:44

Allah Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah. It's amazing. I mean Allah.

SPEAKER_01 3:49

Shaq Allah, why do you love uh Shaykh Hur Defi so much, man? MashaAllah, I mean his obviously his voice is his his kira. And also his mashallah, his integrity. Yeah. His integrity as an individual, mashaAllah. May Allah bless him and preserve him, mashaAllah.

SPEAKER_00 4:03

He's known for that, mashaAllah. You know, subhanAllah, I had the blessing of meeting him once. Ayyuh. Uh this was many, many, many years ago. Uh there was a brother that uh knew one of the uh imams of the haram, so he took me right back to that room uh where the imams are. Shaykh Hardayfi was like laying down, like he was like, you know, resting, and he looks so like normal and humble, subhanallah, and so welcoming and and and beautiful. MashaAllah, after salah, you see him tilt his uh dance, and shmadow walks around and does dhikir. Beautiful. Shaykh Abu Bakr, as we are in the 27th, I want you to think of an asihad that maybe you don't hear many people talk about, like a forgotten point or a subtle point of pursuing Laylatul Qadr that you don't hear in many lectures, but you would tell someone like a very specific advice for these last ten nights.

SPEAKER_02 4:55

You know, there's something, if it's anything, it's one thing I came across from the works of uh Limabim Dal Qayyam Rahimallah. He mentioned that there are about 40 opinions as to when Laylat al-Qadr is. And he said one of the most odd and strangest opinions is that it could be found any night of the ye. So Laylat al-Qadr is not limited and restricted to Ramadan and to the last ten nights. A very odd opinion suggests that Laylat al-Qadr could be any night of the ye. He said, and if that was the case, it'd be worth it to get up every night of the ye to seek the reward of Laylat al-Qadr. He then said, Imagine when we definitely know, and it is authentically being reported that it is in Ramadan and most specifically the last ten nights of Ramadan. So I found that very powerful because now imagine if it was anywhere during the yeah it'd be worth getting up every night. How about now when you know it's limited, it's in ten nights? That should give you enough motivation and energy to get up and do iah, bring the night to life, just like in Nabi sallallahu alayhi wa sallam did through a salat and continue that energy until the last day of Ramadan.

SPEAKER_00 6:16

Allah Kish.

SPEAKER_02 6:18

Beautiful.

SPEAKER_00 6:19

Another question for you, Shaykh. What's the name of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that comes to your heart right now? Is there a favorite name of Allah right now to you that you're calling upon that you feel an attachment to?

SPEAKER_02 6:30

If there's a name to choose, it would be Ismullah.

SPEAKER_00 6:35

Accepter of repentance.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

No, I'm al-taweb, the one who accepts the repentance and enables the slaves to repent. This is the last name of Allah Azza that was revealed in the Quran. Because the last surah as a whole to be revealed was Surah Nasr. And Surah Al-Nasr concluded with this name of Allah Azza. Allah Azzael left, and then after that, just a few ayat came down, and the Quran was finished. So Allah Azza left us with his last name at taweb and no name of Allah who was mentioned after this ayah. And what a beautiful matter to reflect over and to ponder over. That Allah Azza is reminding us at the end of the Quran, I am at taweb. So no matter where you are in life, always return and seek forgiveness and seek the mercy of Allah Azza wa Jal. And Allah's promise is, in nahukan at tawebah, he accepts at tawbah and he will return back to you with love and compassion and mercy and kindness and forgiveness.

SPEAKER_00 7:54

May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless you. Accept our repentance. So I learned something and truly benefit. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala accept our repentance, enable it, and accept it. Allah. Mashayikh, I want to give a quick overview of a theme in Jes 27. One thing I noticed, subhanAllah, in Just 26, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, O people, inna halak nakum, we created you. We made you into male and female nations and tribes so that you may get to know one another. In Just 27, I did not create jinn and man except to worship me. So it says if subhanAllah in Just 26 and Surah al-Hujurat, the purpose of the differentiation of humanity is made clear, so that you may get to know one another. The creator created us that way, so that we may get to know one another. And in Surah al-Dariyatin in Jesus 27, the purpose of creation as a whole, the creation of man as a whole, is to worship Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, is to serve Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And Allah Azza says, Ma'ridu minhu mirzkan wa ma'ridu andyut I do not want any provision from them, nor do I need them to feed me, right? And if you think about what we seek and why we even display virtue, that sometimes virtue comes with an agenda. The agenda is that you will get some sort of benefit from serving this person, from being nice to this person. Perhaps they'll remember you later on. But Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is Al-Ghani al-Hamid. Allah is completely self-sufficient, free of need, free of the need of praise, free of the need of provision. And he says, I don't want anything from them in terms of risq. I don't need any provision, any type of food from them. Innallaha, who arrazaak, durkuwat al-mateen. Verily, Allah alone is the supreme provider, the Lord of all power and the almighty. Subhanahu wa ta'ala. Something very interesting though, another connection. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is saying, I do not need from them anything. I don't need from them risk. But then you come to Surah al-Hadid. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, Mandaladi yukridullah. Who will loan to Allah a beautiful loan? And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, as a result of that, will increase it, will multiply that, and he will have an honorable reward. So it's just this beautiful demonstration of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala not needing you, but speaking to you in terms that are so dignifying. Like these are such dignifying terms. Who's going to loan Allah alone? He gave you the provision in the first place. He gave you existence in the first place. He gave you the means to seek the means. And he's guaranteeing you not just a reward in the hereafter, but he's guaranteeing you as well that you will not be deprived or be deficient because of giving for his sake in this world. It's an incredible trend, subhanallah's just he is truly al-Kareem. Truly Al-Kareem. And one of the extensions of him being Al-Kareem, right, is not just his uh gift giving and his bestowal of generosity, but that karam is nobility, right? So he is noble, subhanahu wa ta'ala. And when you seek his noble face, then Allah makes you noble. And it's such a dignifying way of submission and command, not a way that humiliates, not a way that puts us down, but still puts us in our place. Like it's such a powerful trend and theme throughout this juz. And it's so fitting, subhanAllah, to the 27th, right? Where like Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala does not need us to stand up at night tonight all over the world and call upon him. And Allah did not need to incentivize our forgiveness with a lifetime of good deeds on top of it. But he does so. Al-Kareem. Even though the dua is in nakar'afuun, right? But we naturally we pair afuun khareem, right? Because it's he forgives and subhanAllah from his generosity is his willingness and his capacity to forgive and to pardon despite all that we've done. So I'd love to hear your thoughts first and foremost on the juz, on this notion, and then inshaAllah ta'ala we get into a very specific verse that we want to ask you about Shaykh.

SPEAKER_01 12:30

Rasulullah. It's really I like how you mentioned the dignity and how an abd the goal is to really find dignity in being an abd, dignity in submission, the dignity in striving to be vulnerable to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Especially as you mentioned, as Ibn Ukhaimullah mentioned, you know, the particular ql that if it could be on any night of the year, but particularly it's the ten nights that has been in mutafak fiyar and has been agreed by the scholars, and particularly these last ten nights is when it's a harra u fiha, right? So you should really seek this this night, this night of Laylat al-Qadr. And it's that night where you give everything. And I think it's so beautiful within the sharia in and of itself that one finds dignity in the sharia as a whole, but then particularly in these last ten nights, particularly possibly this night as well, that one goes beyond their capabilities. When you you you see that there's these ten nights and that there's there's times where you should push yourself, you should always ask yourself, is it possible for me to give more? Have I given more in this first night, the second night, the third night? To where when after Ramadan is over, you feel a level of sakeinah, you feel a level of tranquility, knowing that you've pushed yourself. I think when it comes to Ramadan, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala always wants us to push ourselves in general, but then he gives you a time frame which are like, look, you really have to push yourself in these ten nights. And there's so many opportunities for you to do so many different things within these ten nights, reading the Quran, being good to your neighbor, can I ajwa the mayikun, he was on his best manners, and manners being that which is the khuluq with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And from that is doing actions of gratitude. And I think the more one does that, the more find, the more the individual finds dignity in who they are and dignity in what they represent. And when they do that, that feeling of dignity is reward from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, which increases them to do more actions of khir. And that is the that is the the the process of iman and the process of doing uh good deeds. SubhanAllah, it's very, very important to always look at ourselves and look at what we're doing and allow that to serve as a motivation for us to ask those questions and have the introspection to where when we start again the next day, what's something that I can do that makes me better than before? And that whole process of the muhasabah and the muraqaba and pushing oneself in the mujahada is where the Muslim hopefully, hopefully finds dignity in that. That's what I think is very, very important.

SPEAKER_02 15:06

Yeah, that's the great reflections. I mean, Shaykh Ammar was speaking about the purpose of why Allah Azzail created mankind and jinn kind, or ma'alakul jinnnah and insa' ill aliabun. Allah created mankind, jinn kind for no other reason, but they worship him. And then you mentioned as well the mujahada that a person is supposed to um put in his life, struggle against his nafs to worship Allah Azzaal and be consistent and steadfast upon that. And here's why Jazat 27 is very important. Juz al-Dariyat is extremely important for the believer to have a continual relationship with this juzb. Why? Because when we look at juzat al-dariyat and we want to observe what is the theme of juzat 27, what is the central message of all the suar that are in Jazat 27? So that's Surah Al-Dariyat, Altur, Al-Najm, Al-Kamar, Al-Rahman, Al-Wakr, Al-Hadid. The theme is about Allah's promises in this life and in the afterlife. That's the theme of Jazat 27, Jiza al-Dariyat. So from the very beginning, from Surah al-Dariyyat, we will find Allah's promises in this life and in the afterlife. When He says, In al-Muttaqina Fijiun, the Mutaqhin, Verily, they will be in Jannaat many gardens and in rivers. In Surah Tattor, inna al-muttahina fi jadin wahar. And then we move on surah by surah. They are all speaking about Allah's promises for the believers in the afterlife. It's the paradise. And the promise for the disbelievers, it is Jahannam. In al-Mujidiween, Surah Al-Rahman also comes and gives us an entire passage about the paradise, about the hellfire. The surah before that speak about the grieving coming out and so on. So now we asked ourselves the question: why do we have to read Allah's promises? Why do we have to read about the afterlife in order to prepare for it? You will not have energy to prepare for the afterlife if you don't know about Allah's promises. So therefore, we need to read just. We need to remain connected because we read about the afterlife. And as a result, the purpose of this is for us to prepare for it. And the greatest disaster and the greatest trouble we have in this day and age is that people are heedless concerning the afterlife. They are not preparing for it. Allah said, People's accountability has come close. He didn't say would mean that the accountability has come close. And this is an ayah 1,400 years ago. So imagine how close the accountability is. But the sad reality is Allah says, And mankind are drowning in heedlessness. They are surrounded by heedlessness. So this is the disease of the day and age. Why are they fi raflah? Because they're not reading about Allah's promises. They're not reading juzyat. They're not reading Allah's promises of what will happen in the afterlife and what happened on earth for people that did not prepare for the afterlife and took this matter as a joke. So that's the point, and that is the theme of this juzid.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

I got lost in what you were saying. And it really is in every surah. Tayyib Shaykh. Specific question now. When Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is talking about the fall of nations and people falling to their lowest, and then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala mentions the loftiest position with two names that are incredibly rare. Like you know, Malik, you know, Malik. Malik, right? Uh incredible, right? Like it's the most uh intense manifestation of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's kingship and his dominion. Muktadr. You know Qadr Qadir al-Muqtadr? Right? Such a rare thing. Like he is all powerful and he has the power to execute his power. And Allah is offering you a position there. Can you talk about the significance of contrasting the promise of the fall of nations to the promise of a high position that we know that none of us would deserve by our actions?

SPEAKER_02 20:03

No, no. So these two ayat belong to the end of uh surah al-kamr. And uh pretty much if you wanted to know the theme of a surah, you can do that in two ways, one of two ways. Either you look at the introduction, the very few ayat at the beginning, and they can tell you what the theme of the surah is, so what you're gonna expect in the surah. And another way is to just look at the surah, and if there is an ayah that is repeated in it, then that most likely gives uh gives away that theme. And if we look at surah al-kamar, there are two ayat that are repeated often in the surah, and that is qillahita'ala, faqaifa kena a thabi one udr, wa laqadiya sarna al-Quran al-ifa almi mud dakir. Allahjal asks, how severe and intense was my punishment and my warnings towards previous nations. And then he says, Indeed, we made the Quran easy to ponder over, to recite, to reflect, to apply in your life. Fa'almin muddaqir is the anyone who will take heed and take by this Quran and live by this Quran. So when we read this and we see it almost appearing four times in the surah, we know that the theme of Surah Al-Kamar is about previous nations and Allah's destruction upon previous nations and his warnings to them. And then this surah as well, from its themes, is uphold the Quran in your life. For indeed, if you do, your ending would be in the mutahina fijar natin wahar, fi maqadisqin, and the malikin muqtadir. Or come to those ayat. And so when you look at the beginning of the surah, Allah Azza begins the surah all the way until the end. There's nothing positive. It's all about previous nations and the destruction of those previous nations. Allah begins. Begins with the nation of Nuh and what he did to them. Then he speaks about Aad and how he destroyed Aad. Then he speaks about Thamud and what they did and how he destroyed them. Then he speaks about Qumulut and how he destroyed them. And then he speaks about Firaun in two ayat. The people of Firaun. Fira'un himself, my my warnings came to him. They reached him, all of them. Look at the arrogance. Look at the defiance against Allah. He lied and he rejected all the nine ayat that Allah sent to him. And we took them and grabbed them and destroyed them. The destruction of the all-powerful, the one who's able and capable to do all things. Doesn't matter how powerful this nation was and how uh powerful they claimed to be. Al-Muqtadir got rid of them. And the entire surahs like this, it's all about destruction and punishment. And the only hope are the last two ayat in the surah. The last two ayat are the only hope in the surah. Allah says, Inna al-mutaqin, afijannat in wa nahar, al-mutaqeen, the pious, righteous ones, they will be injannat many, many gardens. We'll get to nahar. But this ayah here, it is a contrast of what was mentioned before. Right before these ayat, Allah said, In al-mujirimeen, feel balalin wasawar, the mujirimeen, the criminals, the wrongdoers that exist in every time and every space. There were mujirimeen in the time of Nu'h. There were mujirimeen in the time of Aad. There was mujirimeen in the time of Salih. And there was mujirimeen in the time of I Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And even in this day and age, there are mujirimeen, there are criminals, there are wrongdoers. These mujirimeen, Allah said they are feebal, they are in misguidance in this worldly life. All their actions are actions of deviance, actions of rebellion, actions of transgression. And in the afterlife, they will be in a raging, burning fire. In contrast to that, Allah now he says, in al-mutaqeen, because at the same time on the same earth there were mujermeen, opposite to them, there were mutaqeen. Can you believe? On an earth in where there were people that committed the worst of crimes against Allah and the creation of Allah, on the same earth, there were people that were described as mutakheen, worshipped Allah Azza wa Jal, and understood their purpose in life. Al-Muttaqeen are the pious ones, those that were patient with Allah's command, and they were patient with calamities they faced in life, and they were patient when it came to keep away from prohibitions. In al-Muttaqina, these people that shared this earth with the mujrimeen that were victims to the crimes of the mujirimeen. What keeps them alive? What gives them hope? What allows them to keep bearing the difficulties and troubles they face in life? Nothing but to focus on Allah's promise. And it's so true. How can I remain a mutaqi in this day and age? How can I remain patient upon the suffering and the calamities that I experience? How can I remain patient upon Allah's command? The only way to do that is to keep your eyes on the prize, and that is jannaat wa nahar, gardens. Wun nahar, he did not say anhar, anhar means rivers, but nahar is a word that carries many meanings. They say an nahar minan nahar. So nahar here means they would enjoy rivers, they would enjoy brightness. There's light when they were in this world of life, they experienced gloominess, darkness, injustice, oppression. But over there there is nahar, there is light, brightness, and nah also a sah. And they are going to experience and enjoy a vast range of fruits and enjoyments and a spacious land that Allah gives them. And then Ishaykh Omar, even better than all of this, Allah said, Fi Makadisudkin muqtadir. This ayah, the final ayah, is a reward much better than what was mentioned. What was mentioned was Al-Jannaat wa nahr. Here he now said, Fi maqahq. They will be in a seat of honor, in a place of truth. Allahu Akbar. And the paradise was called Makqa Sidq because they were people of truth. They were people, they were honest people, they were honest in their relationship with Allah Azza wa jal. And they met Allah with honesty in their heart. And how does a person become honest with Allah? The only way to be honest with Allah is to prefer what Allah loves over that which you desire and that which you love. And we face these decisions every day of our life. Every day you're in bed and Adan al-Fajr is being called, you have a choice. You can either prefer what you want over what Allah wants and stay sleeping, or you can prefer what Allah wants over what you want. And you get up and you do what you were speaking about, Shaykh Abdullah, Mujahadatunfs, and waking up and being from among the believers that establish Salat al-Fajr. And this is how to be from As-Sadiqen to earn maqadis. And then finally, Allah He inspires us and says that seat of honor, it's not gonna be just uh next to some random king in this world of life or someone that you loved in this world of life, it's not be next to your parents or next to your father and mother that you probably truly loved. It is going to be hinda malikin muqtadir. That seat of honor is going to be ni. Heavy hinda meaning ni. Malikin muqtadir. Allahu akbar. Al-Malik is a beautiful name of Allah. Al Muqtadir is a beautiful name of Allah. The name of Allah al-Malik, it's two names. It's a combination of two names. It's a combination of Al-Malik al-Malik. Malik is a king. Malik is the one who possesses the authority to command and prohibit. That's Al-Malik, the king. You know, they say that the highest authority in the land is a Malik, is a king. And the king, his word is law. So Al-Malik, Allah Azza, His word is law. He commands and He prohibits in the Quran. Then we have Al-Malik. Al-Malik is the one who governs his creation with his word and actions. That's Al-Malik. So he does whatever he wants with his creation. So when Allah Azzael sends a calamity upon the believers, that's because he's al-Malik. He does what he wants with his property. Now putting these two names together gives you Al-Malik, the sovereign, the ultimate sovereign and the ultimate king, where he has no one above him, and he's the one who commands and prohibits. And the Malikin and finally muqtadir. Well muqtadir is the one who has the power and ability to do whatever he wants. It's also a combination of al-Qadir Wal Qadir. Al-Qadir is al-Qadir means that Allah does what he wills, and if he doesn't will something, he doesn't do it. Al-Qadir is the one who does what he decrees. He does what he wants. Walmuqtadir is a combination between his name Al-Qadir W al-Kadir. And what is beautiful in a final reflection here is this this name Al-Muqtadir came two times in the surah. One time it was mentioned as a name of Allah when He punished. When He said, When Firaun denied and rejected the Ayat, Allah Azza said that he took him and seized him and punishment, the punishment of a mighty, powerfully able to do all things. The same name that he spoke about when he unleashed his punishment upon the perpetrators and the criminals was the very same name he used when he rewarded the believers with the paradise. And he said, In the Malik in Muqtadir, teaching us that the same muqtadir that punished is the same muqtadir that rewarded al-Mutaqeen and the believers. You may think how so the next surah al-Rahman, because he's the older subhanallah.

SPEAKER_00 32:09

He took us on a journey. I know that Shaykh Abdullah is deeply moved, and as I am, and I'm sure many of those who are watching, may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala accept from you. May Allah Azajr grant us that position in the Maniqen Muqtadr. With our Habib sallallahu alayhi wa shi wasallam. Please, dear brothers and sisters, in this 27th night, keep us in your dua, inshaAllah. We ask for your support and we ask that Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala gather us all in a furadawana and forgive us for our sins. Allah Amin. Barakallah fiqum was salamu aikum rahmatullah raqat.