Ibn alQayyim – Provisions For The Hereafter

Ibn alQayyim: Provisions for the Hereafter

Taught by Sheikh Sajid Umar

Notes of a student

Disclaimer: These notes are not comprehensive; they are only a guideline with which to follow the recording.

Session 8: 25th April 2015

Part 1

Assalaamu alaykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu,

Sheikh Sajid welcomes session 8 of the ‘Provisions for the Hereafter’ course. He begins by praising Allah and sending blessings upon the final messenger Muhammad (Khutbatul Haajah).

A short note about exam time:

We know the questions of the grave, but knowing the answers doesn’t mean we will answer with them. In this way, the exam of the grave is different than a normal exam.

If you are preparing for your exams, remember the greatest exam is on judgement day. May Allah protect us all.

Never ever forget du’a. Sometimes we ask everybody to make du’a for us during testing times like exams, interviews, etc. We must remember that we ourselves must make du’a.

Allah says, “Who is the one who answers the du’a of the stressed/desperate one, and lifts the burden off them.” [27:62]

The best person to make du’a for you is you because you are the most stressed and desperate!

Recap:

We discussed that the Prophet(s) became a Prophet with the first command; “Read”, and a messenger with “Stand up and warn” in the second revelation.

One of the benefits of this is that knowledge precedes action.

Whoever practices Islam without knowledge will go astray just as those mentioned in Surah Fatihah did. Though their intention is to come closer to Allah, and no doubt they love Allah, our love for Allah must be based on sound education.

The word for knowledge, علم, and the word for action, عمل are very similar in physical make up. However, just out of observation, the letter ل comes before م in the modern-day Arabic alphabet, conforming to knowledge before action.

The fruits of your love for Allah should be based on knowledge

“And we found you lost and guided you…” Allah taught us how to worship Him and this allowed us to act.

❝Learn as much as you want, but, by God, you wont be rewarded until you act.❞

The Prophet Muhammad (s)

In surah al-Fatihah, the first three ayahs teach us about Allah, Allah is educating us about Himself. Once you know and love Allah, we don’t want to worship nor seek assistance from anybody other than him. Action, once again, comes after knowledge.

Allah says in the beginning of surah Ma’idah, “O you who have believed, fulfil your contracts… [5:1]” and the Prophet (s) mentioned that a characteristic of the hypocrite is not fulfilling their promises. Here again, knowledge before action as we have to understand the requirements of contracts to act upon it.
The next time you open the Qur’an, look to see how many aayaat of knowledge come before action.

There is a difference between knowledge and guidance. How many non-Muslims and orientalists have studied the Qur’an extensively, and have published papers on how the Qur’an is full of “ring structures”, but none of their knowledge brings them closer to Allah. It remains as information in their minds. This is why the Prophet(s) said, “Whoever Allah misguides, none can guide” before every speech.

The tool of the Shariah is the pen. The pen is a means of education “Noon. By the pen and what they inscribe…” [68:1]

‘Al Hamd’ – noun. “All Praise is due to Allah.” We are being educated and taught about Allah. Allah is educating about Himself.

Allah teaches us about Himself so we love Him and want to worship Him.

The Prophet (s) used to say: “Whoever Allah decrees guidance upon no one can misguide and those whom Allah leaves to be misguided no one guide.” There are people who have studied the Arabic language in such depth yet their intentions are not sincere and they do it to criticize the Qur’an or help orientalists in their studies of the Qur’an. Allah chooses who He wants to grow our emaan and understanding of this book.

The Prophet’s(s) Dawah:

At the beginning of prophethood, the Prophet (s) was told to portray the message to his close ones(Family/friends). Later on he was commanded to spread the message to the community and other tribes.

He was known for his truthfulness and noble lineage but after he proclaimed the public message of Islam, he became the one should be cursed. (Abu Lahab cursed him)

The Quraysh would worship idols that they made with their own hands! They were hooked onto their own misguidance. They were shallow people, because they blindly followed their forefathers.

We need to think and contemplate the seerah.

One of the Shaikh’s teachers would say, “We read, but when we read we don’t understand, and when we understand we don’ t apply.”

We live in an age where islamic knowledge is accessible to us in so many different ways. Even when we are not looking for knowledge it comes to us.
We know a lot of narrations in our head, but it hasn’t yet entered our hearts and our limbs.
Studying Islam became easy due to the publication of great books. We live in a golden age where knowledge is widely available. We have a lot of information in our heads, yet it doesn’t touch our hearts. We must focus on application, not information.

The Quraysh learnt the hard way. The dawah had to continue for 23 years before the message penetrated their hearts. They never pondered over the message. The Prophet (s) rhetorically approached them and asked, If I told you an army was coming from behind that mountain would you believe me? They answered yes, for they knew it was the truth yet chose to deny it.

This is a lesson that even though we know our ideals, we shouldn’t be close-minded to someone who advises us sincerely. Imam al-Shafi’i said, “I never once argued with anyone hoping to win the debate; rather I always wished that the truth would come from his side.” We must understand that we can be wrong, we need to think twice before answering.

If we truly understood what would happen to us in the grave, we would not be arrogant. And the worst type of arrogance is when it comes to religion.

Ibn Qayyim discusses the letters that the Prophet (s) sent to the leaders and kings at the time of the Prophet (s) is a lesson to all those who run dawah organisations.

Have a strategy:

You don’t have to reach everybody at once or do everything at once. Understand the stage and maturity of the situation.
Doing too many things at once, before their time, is inefficient.
Al-Najashi gave Muslims a chance to speak and this is how he came to find about the Prophet (s). Dawah went to Al-Najashi, he didn’t go to it.
With regards to focus, One full cup is better than three half cups. Yes, three half cups equal one and a half cups of water but they are three incomplete cups.
A candle illuminates. But, focused light is a laser. Effectivity and efficiency are the goals of da’wah.

Names of the Prophet (s)

All the names of the Prophet (s) are descriptive ones. He (s) was named Muhammad because it was hoped he would become “The praised one”. His (s)other name Ahmad is one who is more praised. This is of course different from divine praise as that is praise combined with love.

Both these names are mentioned in the Qur’an.

Among his (s) names:

Al-Mutawakkil: The most complete in putting trust in Allah.
Al Maahi: The eradicator, the one who erases falsehood, and abrogates that which came before.
Al Hashir: The gatherer (the first to be resurrected) on the day of judgement. [Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 56, Hadith 732]
Al ‘Aqib: The last Prophet, or the one that comes at the end of the other Prophets.
Al Muqaffiy: The seal of Prophets. The one who closes or seals prophethood.
Nabiy al-Taubah: The Prophet of Repentance, the one who asked Allah to forgive and protect this ummah. (Also a name shared with ‘Esa (as).

Footnote:

One must always turn to Allah alone for forgiveness and in repentance.

Istighfaar is generally there for the minor sins, but for the major sins to be forgiven, the concept of taubah has to come into play.

And [mention] when Jesus, the son of Mary, said, “O children of Israel, indeed I am the messenger of Allah to you confirming what came before me of the Torah and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name is Ahmad.” [61:6]

If a person practices taubah, Allah will remove the major sin from their records. This wasn’t the case of Bani Israil, when they committed a sin, sometimes the taubah entailed killing themselves.

Nabiy al-Rahmah: He was sent with mercy, being compassionate to all people, coming with the message of mercy.
Al Fatih: The opener to Jannah, none will enter Jannah before him.
Al Ameen: The trustworthy, the one who presented the message with integrity.

The most complete meaning for a human being with these specific words are for the Prophet (s).

Hence, names like “Rasool” and other specific names of the Prophet (s) are specific to the Prophet. For example, names like “Kaleemullah” which is “Someone who spoke to Allah and Allah spoke to him”. No other prophet was called these names, meant in meaning, that the Prophet (s) has been called. Other Prophets were titled with “Rasool” “Al-Shaahid” “Al-Mubashir” these names are not specific to the Prophet (s) rather it was shared by other messengers and prophets.

The Children of the Prophet (s):

Allah blessed him (s) with many children, and tested him as almost all his children passed away during his lifetime, except Fatimah, his daughter.

The Prophet’s (s) boys names:

al-Qaasim: The Prophet (s) was known as ‘Abul Qaasim.’ This child passed away at a very young age.

Kunya: Very common in th Arab culture. Teknonym. ‘Father or mother of so and so.’

‘Abd-Allaah – Scholars differ whether he was born before or after prophethood. The correct view is that he was born after prophethood

Ibraaheem (The only child not given to him by Khadijah, his mother was Mariyah al-Qibtiyyah)

And the girls were:

Zaynab
Ruqayyah
Umm Kulthoom
Faatimah

When Ibraheem passed away, He (s) said: “Dear Ibrahim! We can’t do anything for you. Divine Will can’t be changed. Your father’s eyes shed tears, and his heart is sad and grieved for your death. However, I will not say anything which may invite the wrath of Allah. If there had not been the true and certain promise of Allah that we too shall come after you, I would have wept more and become more grieved at the separation from you”.

From this the scholars have derived that the “أوصاف الجبلية” or “Natural traits” such as sympathy, affection and compassion are not at prohibited as people may think. Following on from that, telling children not to cry when someone passes away is incorrect and is harmful to their emotional development.

“The Prophet of Allah (s) entered the room while Ibrahim was dying. Upon that, his eyes started dropping tears. Then `Abdur-Rahman ibn `Awf said, ‘Even you, messenger of Allah!’ Then he said ‘Oh Ibn `Awf! It is but mercy.’ He continued (crying) some more and then said, “The eyes weep, the heart is full of grief, and we are nothing but that which does not please our Lord. Verily, we are sorrowed for your departure O! Ibrahim.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim).

Crying is a human trait!
The Shaikh narrates a powerful personal experience about the passing away of a young mother and the reactions of her children. Access the audio recordings for details.

People were telling the children not to cry, but the right way to look at it is that you only cry if you love the person that has passed away. Children are innocent, and they should not be pressured in this way. The Shaikh narrates a beautiful story where he comforts the two daughters. It’s okay to cry. Crying is not bad, it is not immature. This way we are bottling the emotions of innocent children, we will make them want to do it only in private and to separate themselves from society.

Let us not preach things which we don’t know, because we may ruin a child’s entire life due to our actions, by coming forth with things that Allah has not revealed.
Allah has never told us that it is not allowed to be sad. Allah has only revealed that we must not say that which is disbelief.

The scholars have discussed the “Best females.” Some said it was Fatimah, others say Khadijah, others say ‘Aisha. Some scholars do what is called “التوقف” which is to say that none is better than the other as they are all virtuous.

These people left a legacy behind. Every Muslim should have a world they envision when they pass away, what will the world miss the day you go?

From the major decisions you make during your life, is to settle down with somebody that is conducive to your journey towards Allah.

Important note: Before recording or spreading any split-parts of these lessons, please ask the Shaikh’s permission. If clips are shared out of context, it may cause more harm than benefit!

The Prophet’s (s) wives:

Khadijah bint Khuwaylid

Khadijah was a major support for the Prophet (s) from the very beginning she says to him, “Allah will never disgrace you.” At that moment he (s) needed the closest supporter, and that was his (s) spouse.

When you have an amazing marriage, it begins with choosing the right spouse, and you miss your spouse throughout your life, even after they pass away, such as how the Prophetﷺ missed his wife Khadijah after she passed away.

Sawda bint Zam’a

The Prophet(s) would spend two nights with each wife, and Sawdah would give up her one of her nights to Aisha (r).

The Scholars have deduced the permissibility of giving up rights in marriage, however, that doesn’t mean you can’t change your mind, because the Shari’ah has given you the right.

A’isha Siddiqa bint Abu Bakr

Aisha reported that Allah’s messenger (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) said: “You were shown to me in a dream for three nights. An angel brought you to me in a silk cloth and he said: ‘Here is your wife’ and when I removed (the cloth) from your face, lo, it was you, so I said: If this is from Allah, He will carry it out.”

The Prophet (s) married Aisha in shawaal when she was 6 years of age and consummated the marriage when she was 9.
Story of the Ifk (slander) – ayahs were revealed to defend Aisha (as) and announce her innocence and to warn the slanderers.
She was the only virgin he (s) married.
Revelation wouldn’t come in any of the other houses except in Aisha’s.
There would be (healthy) competition between the wives of the Prophet (s).

Regarding his marriage to Aisha (r):

We can’t compare a 9 year old from the (s) time to a 9 year old today, that would be tantamount to comparing Adam to a man today. The maturity levels are not the same now.

There is a disputed opinion that the Prophet (s) had a wife named Rayhaanah.
When he (s) passed away, he had 9 wives.

Hafsa bint ‘Umar

Hafsah, the daughter of Umar, was not very old and would compete with Aisha. Through this Umar became the father in law of the Prophet (s) and Abu Bakr likewise.

Zaynab Bint Khuzaymah

Known as Zaynab bint Khuzaymah Ibn Haarith

Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya

Umm Salamah was the last wife to pass away. She lost her husband, Abu Salamah, and felt that no one could replace him. However, she made Du’aa to Allah to grant her better, and the scholars of seerah said, after she said this a knock was heard, and it was the Prophet (s), who thereafter became her husband.
This was truly a moment of Tawakkul.
She submitted to the will of Allah.
After her iddah she was married to the Prophet (s). They differ with regards to who got her married to the Prophet (s).
Some say it was Umar (r). They say he was her paternal cousin. Others say it was her young son, Umar. However, they say he was too young to marry his mother off.
Rasulullah (s) can be a wali and get a female married to him. (A special gift given to the Prophet (s).

Zaynab bint Jahsh

Zaynab would boast to the other wives that Allah married her to the Prophet (s) from above the heavens
Zaynab was married to Zayd. This shows the love that Allah has for Zayd. An Ayah was revealed regarding adoption to cancel out ‘at-tabannee’ which is a concept of adoption where the adopted takes the father’s name. It was revealed to protect the lineage. Allah commanded that the divorce happens between zayd and zainab, until she finished the iddah, then Allah married her to the Prophet (s).
Allah commanded zayd and zaynab to divorce so no one can say that Zayd wasn’t ‘Zayd bin Muhammad’ and to teach us he wasn’t his son.
This was the wisdom of Allah that he caused the Prophet (s) sons to die early, so no one could claim prophethood after his death.

Other wives: