[notes. from lecture by Ahmed Sidky]
… the Muslim that smiles, the Muslim that – you know – really approaches everything with a positive attitude, that is tolerant, that does not overburden people – THAT is the forgotten sunnah. Wallahi, that is a forgotten sunnah.
Many of our Muslim brothers and sisters, they forget they’re dealing with humans.
Let me talk a little about consistency, so I don’t go totally off topic. Let me tell you a story that I personally – it taught me a lot in life. And I don’t know if it’s a true story or a hypothetical story, but the message is there:
A sheikh and his student were crossing the desert. So the sheikh and the student start walking – you know, the desert’s pretty hot, they get thirsty. They reach a well. So the student is like, “I want to drink.” And the sheikh says, “No… wait until the next well.” The student is like, “Ya sheikh, I’m really thirsty.” “Wait until the next well.” So they keep on walking and walking till they come to the next well. The student’s like: Water *smile of relief*. And he’s just about to drink, and the sheikh says, “No. Wait until the next well.” “Ya sheikh, I really want to drink, I’m thirsty.” “Wait until the next well.” And they keep on walking and walking till they come to another well, and the same story goes again.
Until, brothers and sisters, they cross the whole dessert. And the sheikh says to the student: “This is life.”
The same thing should apply to life. Whenever you want to let go and go with your desires, just wait. Whenever you want to let go and stop working for Islam, or stop upholding this positive character – just wait. It’s a matter of one station to another.
In a very famous book, “Don’t Be Sad” – I don’t know if you guys have read it – there’s a title; it’s called, “yawmuka yawmuk” – “a day is your day,” that’s it. Think of one day as your unit. Say, “I will only be a good Muslim today. I will only pray sunnah today. I will only be good to my parents today. Today only.”
And then tomorrow comes, and say, “Only today.” And then the next day and say, “Only today.”
And what is life except a couple of days? Wallahi, they go like this *rotates index fingers around each other* – we all know. For the elders, you can testify – it’s just a couple of days… right? … that’s it…
So, brothers and sisters – that is – if you understand this story, you understand a fundamental concept of consistency: it’s to break things down into small parts. The Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallam taught us that the best of deeds to Allah are the consistent ones, even if they’re small. The consistent ones… even if they’re small…
It’s that act of “keep on going.” And in a long hadith of the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallam – I’m going to take the last part of it, because it really symbolizes, and [is] your test to know if we are consistent on the right road or not.
The Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallm says that, “whoever will uphold my sunnah” (again, not the beard or the siwaak or the extra prays – the way of life), “it will be” (in this day and age) “as if they are holding a piece of burning coal in their hands.”
It hurts.
If your life isn’t hurting, there’s something wrong – there’s something wrong. And my proof to this is that, in a long hadith, the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallm says (this is a hadith qudsi): “Huffat al-jannah bil-makaarih” – that “jannah has been surrounded by hardships,” by things that are hard.
Walking up for Fajr is hard, going to the Masjid is hard, respecting your parents sometimes is extremely hard – but you have to do it. That’s the way to jannah. That’s the character. That’s the consistency we need. THAT’s – when you do it, it will hurt. And once it hurts, you know you’re on the right track.
Does anybody here go the gym? Weight lifting? Alright. You know that last *makes strained face and weight lifting motion with arms*… that last one when *again, makes face and motion* – you’re, you know? You know that? When you press and you’re “grrrrr” – you know that?
That’s consistency, brothers and sisters.
Question: if you’re in bed… and all cozy… and that alarm goes off for Fajr – do you do “grrrr” to get out of bed? If you don’t – and you press that snooze button, or the off button – that’s not consistency.
Subhan Allah. Like, in the gym, we put that effort in because we know the benefit that our muscles will get out of that last count. We do and that’s why we go through it. Alright? Do we know the benefit for getting up for Fajr. It’s… there’s something wroing.
Sometimes, wallahi – in my life, I really have to sometimes just press on my teeth. Someone gets on your nerves *big, forced smile* “Oh, alhamdulillah brother,” *cheesy grin continued* – it’s consistency.
I hope you guys can feel what it means to be consistent. And across the different disciplines, we have to be consistent. The Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallm was consistent with a certain trait with his family, with the believer, with everybody, across the line, not only in worship.
In sha’ Allah, to conclude. Brothers and sisters, we cannot be transformer Muslims. Brothers, you guys know transformers. Ee-ee-aa, and they change and stuff like that? You know? You don’t know? You remember transformers, right? Yeah? Yeah! Ok.
Transformers was a cartoon, for those of you do not know – robots transform into cars, ya’ni, alhmadulillah, it’s a long story. These transformers, they can transform form one shape into another.
To be consistent in character, you cannot be a transformer. You cannot be “jazak Allah khair, brother” *soft voice, hand on chest, head lowered* in the Masjid, and then outside *resume regular position, energetic voice* “Yo- yo- yo- what’s up?” There’s something wrong here. You cannot be in the masjid, ma sha’ Allah, you know, you’re in charge of the treasurer, and so forth, and then you go to work, and you work six hours – how many hours? – eight hours *clock in extra time*, alhamdulillah, and you write that down. No.
We have to be consistent. You cannot be different types of Muslims – one with Muslims, and one outside, because Allah subhanu wa ta’ala says in Surat al-Baqarah:
وَإِذَا لَقُواْ الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ قَالُواْ آمَنَّا وَإِذَا خَلَوْاْ إِلَى شَيَاطِينِهِمْ قَالُواْ إِنَّا مَعَكْمْ إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ مُسْتَهْزِؤُونَ“
Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala says in the Qur’an, that when they’re with the good people, they say, “Oh, we’re believers” – (we’re “jazak Allah khair,” we’re “barak Allahu feek,” we’re “assalamu alaikum”) – and when they go to the other group they say, “no, no, no – we’re cool, we’re with you” [2:14].
This is one of the characteristics of hypocrites. And none of us wants to be hypocrites, in sha’ Allah. So that is consistency.
Now. Some of us might feel: “Ahmed, you’re talking very theoretical here.” Ok. And I’m going end in sha’ Allah.
One day, one of the companions, they met Abu Bakr as-Sideeq, so Abu Bakr was asking him, “How are you?” And he [the other companion] said, “Naafaqa Hanthala” – he said, “Hanthala [saying his own name] has become a hypocrite.” He said, “Why?” He said, “When I’m with the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallm, I remember jannah and naar as if I’m there. But when I go back to work, or to my family, I forget about those things.” I’m not consistent. He [Abu Bakr] said, “Oh my God, I have the same problem. Let’s go to the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wassalm.” So they went to the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wasallm , and they told him the problem, and the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wassalm said (and he comforts all of us, and he says): “This is normal.” This is normal. Life is “saa’ah wa saa’ah” – it is “an hour and an hour.”
Meaning… and there is an more important lesson I want to get to from this. Brothers and sisters, listen to this. WHEN Hanthala and the companions were around the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wassalm, they felt… as if they were in jannah. And when they went back to the dunya – to the world and all that it has, they felt that they were far away from it.
One of the practical aspects – and here’s where I come – the practical aspect to be consistent in your character is good company… is the people that you are with – simple.
If you’re around good people, you’ll become better. If you’re around bad people, they will make you forget – that’s in ahadith, in the Qur’an…
“وَاصْبِرْ نَفْسَكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُم بِالْغَدَاةِ وَالْعَشِيّ”ِ
“And be patient with those who call to Allah in day and night” [18:28]
… THIS is a known fact.
So one of the things, and this is why I try to promote us getting together. In sha’ Allah, this [the audience at the conference] is a great group of people – this should be your friends. And again, not closing it up, but opening it up. Us as a core, and opening it up to the world.
And in concluding, in sha’ Allah, I wan to remind us of a title of a book I read that REALLY drove AAAALLLL of this home. It was three words: “Ad-Da’wah ila Allah Hubb” – “Calling People to Allah is Love.”
Simple.
Your character – the ultimate goal of it, is to call people closer to Allah. If you love people genuinely – you’ll be merciful. If you love – and I’m talking about Muslims and non-Muslims here – if you love good for people, you will be merciful, you will be tolerant, you not overload them – all things I said.
And that’s why, subhan Allah, we should understand our role on this earth as – we are here for the betterment of everyone. And that could only come through love.
سبحانك اللهم و بحمدك، أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت، أستغفرك و أتوب إليك
Sheikh Sami al-Majid