Do the earthly standards benefit man when he dies?

 The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth, but He looks to your hearts and your deeds.))

(At-Tabraani)

 There are earthly standards according to which people appreciate things, and there is a Divine standard. The earthly standards are: handsomeness; beauty is a value for both man and woman, richness; it is a value, so the rich person is well respected, and his mistakes are all forgiven and power, which is a value too. Thus, handsomeness, richness and power are earthly standards.

 A powerful man has the ability to do many things to people (such as favors and offer them his services), and can refuse doing many things out of his will. However, can the people who exalt such a powerful person benefit him when death comes?

((The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail* Except him who brings to Allah a clean heart [clean from Shirk (polytheism) and Nifaq (hypocrisy))

(Ash-Shu'ara': 88-89)

 People glorify the wealthy man, who spends his money the way he likes. They praise him seeking his wealth. No matter how many people praise this man and no matter how many words of flattery they say to him, does his wealth benefit him when the Angel of death comes to him, and Allah will call him to account? Does not Allah, the Exalted say:

((Then as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand will say: "Take, read my Record!* "Surely, I did believe that I shall meet my Account!"* So he shall be in a life, well-pleasing* In a lofty Paradise* The fruits in bunches whereof will be low and near at hand* Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past!* But as for him who will be given his Record in his left hand, will say: "I wish that I had not been given my Record!* "And that I had never known, how my Account is?* "I wish, would that it had been my end (death)!* "My wealth has not availed me* "My power and arguments (to defend myself) have gone from me!"* It will be said* "Seize him and fetter him* Then throw him in the blazing Fire* "Then fasten him with a chain whereof the length is seventy cubits!"* Verily, He used not to believe in Allah, the Most Great.))

(Al-Haqqah: 19-33)

 Money, strength, handsomeness, wittiness or eloquence will not do you any good. Only a clean heart and good deeds will.

This is the deed accepted by Allah:

 Imam Al-Fudhail bin 'Iyadh had an amazing saying of his. He said, "Allah accepts whatever deed you do provided that it fulfills two conditions: it should be sincere, and it should be right. To be sincere means the deed through which man seeks Allah's Countenance, and to be right means the deed should be compatible with the Sunnah."

The word "forever" as mentioned in the Noble Quran

 Dear brother, we live in a short and ephemeral worldly life, whereas the eternal life which is described by Allah in Quran:

((They will abide therein forever,))

(Al-Baiyyinah: 8)

 They will stay therein for eternity. The human mind can never imagine what eternity is. Man may think that it is one billion years or billions of billions years. If you refrain from eating or drinking for a year, metaphorically speaking you refer to this period as billions of years, yet it is not eternity; eternity is longer than that. If we have number one on earth, the zeroes are all the way to sun, the distance between the earth and the sun is 156 million kilometers and there is a zero in every millimeter, does this what eternity means? No, it does not. It is but a number whose value is zero if it is linked to infinity. This number is limited, and its value is zero as it is linked to infinity. The issue of eternity is something totally different.

 Dear brother, if you have a bag of flour, and you want to count the atoms inside it, you need a magnifier. How many atoms you will find inside it? Assume each atom stands for one million years, how many years are there in the bag? What if there are 850 atoms and each atom stands for one million years? What if the bag is 100 kilos? What does eternity mean?

What does Allah call us to, and who is the loser?

 Allah the Almighty calls us to gain the eternal happiness, and He calls us to seek the Paradise as wide as the heavens and the earth. Hence: that is why:

(("The losers are those who will lose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection. Verily, that will be a manifest loss!"))

(Az-Zumar: 15)

 If man is bankrupt, and he loses all his wealth, he is not considered a loser, so who is the biggest loser? He is the one who loses the Hereafter:

((So, when they forgot (the warning) with which they had been reminded, We opened to them the gates of every (pleasant) thing, until in the midst of their enjoyment in that which they were given, all of a sudden, We took them to punishment, and lo! They were plunged into destruction with deep regrets and sorrows.))

(Al-An'am: 44)

The meaning of eternity as mentioned in the Noble Quran

 I hope that our dignified brother understand the meaning of eternity, the meaning of being in Paradise forever:

((There they will have all that they desire,))

(Qaf: 35)

 It means that whatever you have in mind will be just before you (in Paradise)

((The fruits in bunches whereof will be low and near at hand.))

((Al-Haqqah: 23))

 You won't need a ladder to climb and pick up what you want. Whatever you have in mind, will be near at hand. In Paradise the bestowal is limitless, and there is no need to work, while life in the worldly life is based on hardworking and exerting efforts:

((O man! Verily, you are returning towards your Lord with your deeds and actions (good or bad), a sure returning, so you will meet (i.e. the results of your deeds which you did))

(Al-Inshiqaq: 6)

 Why is Paradise the true profit? Because everything in the worldly life has an end. How many years do you live in the worldly life, ten, twelve, twenty? Let us say that during these years you perform the five prayers daily,, you fast for a month (Ramadhan) every year, you have performed Hajj once or twice so far and you lower your gaze, and you are honest,, faithful and sincere and you worship Allah the Exalted. You can do that for years, and everything will be over when death comes. On the other hand, in Paradise that is as wide as the heavens and the earth:

((And they will say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah Who has fulfilled His Promise to us and has made us inherit (this) land. We can dwell in Paradise where we will; how excellent a reward for the (pious good) workers!"))

(Az-Zumar: 74)

((Then as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand will say: "Take, read my Record!* "Surely, I did believe that I shall meet my Account!"* So he shall be in a life, well-pleasing* In a lofty Paradise* The fruits in bunches whereof will be low and near at hand* Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past!))

(Al-Haqqah: 19-24)

A word:

 Let me be honest with you and tell you precise words: the subject of Paradise and hellfire are only heard about in Masajid from Khutaba', and we can hear about them while attending a religious lesson. In fact what man is required to do is to seek Paradise clearly and intensively. He can do that by thinking about the Hereafter while he performs his daily activities; in his words, deeds, silence, looks, giving, prevention, keeping ties with sh3er, severing ties with them, marriage, selling and buying. The worldly life is in front of people, whereas the greatness of the Hereafter is mentioned in Quran. In the worldly life there is a woman passing before you, a luxurious car, a very prestigious villa, parks, entrance, decorations, luxurious furniture, very expensive feasts and travels, so the worldly life is tangible, while the Hereafter is a piece of news (we are informed about in the Noble Quran).

What does "this man deserves Paradise" mean?

 What does "this man deserves Paradise" mean? He (Allah the Almighty) says:

((Alif-Lam-Mim. [These letters are one of the miracles of the Qur'an and none but Allah (Alone) knows their meanings]* This is the Book (the Qur'an), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqun [the pious and righteous persons who fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)]* Who believe in the Ghaib))

(Al-Baqarah: 1-3)

 Verily, Allah the Almighty has told the truth;, the tangible thing is the worldly life.

An important point:

 Dear brother, most people sell and buy, earn money, eat, get dressed, attend parties, drive cars and go with their families for picnics. All of these are tangible, and people can perceive them. Most people live their moment only, so what if we imagine their destiny in the Hereafter? Does anyone who believes in the Hereafter dare to take someone's house by force? Does anyone who believes in the Hereafter dare to tell you, "You owe me nothing, and if you claim so, you can go and file a lawsuit against me in the courts"? This is the way how a disbeliever deals with people. How ironic it is that when you ask someone, "Do you believe in the Hereafter?" he replies, "Definitely, I believe in the Hereafter. Why do you think I do not? Allah forbid! Allah forbid!" However you never see what proves you wrong whether at at his work or in the way he deals with people. There are about 6.000 lawsuits in each court at the Palace of Justice, and most of which are sued for malicious reasons. Whoever files a false lawsuit against someone does not care how much money the sue costs him although his money was forcibly taken from him. I was told about many false lawsuits. Well, whoever deals with people in such a way, does he really believe in the Hereafter? Does he really believe in the Divine Justice?

Who is the idiot?

 While a man was circumambulating around Al-Ka'bah, he was saying, "O Allah forgive my sins, but I think You won't." The man who was behind him said, "Hey you, why are you so desperate of Allah's mercy!" He replied, "My sin is grave." I told the story of this man in a previous lesson, but I would like to repeat it now. That man broke into a house, killed its owner and ordered the wife to give him all she had. Although she did, he killed her first child, and when she found him serious about killing the second one, she gave him a golden armor, on which two verses were engraved. When he read them, he fainted:

If the prince, his ushers and the worldly
judge judged unfairly
Woe, woe, woe to the worldly judge
from the Judge of Heaven

 By Allah, dear brother I know a man who is very powerful and extremely wealthy, and he has good health, but he never fears Allah. Yesterday his kidneys stopped working properly, due to renal failure. Who is the idiot? He is the one who forgets that there is a Great Allah who will call people to account. Thus, I considered that man idiot and foolish. He thinks he is powerful and rich, and that by his money he can do whatever he wishes. His goods are sealable and his wealth is huge. All people serve him because of his money, and so he humiliates them by his money forgetting about Ad-Dayyaan the One Who Recompenses. As a result, Allah the Exalted afflicted him out of sudden with a renal failure. There are diseases, dear bsh3er, which turns one's life into unbearable hell.

Does Allah look to our appearances? Why?

 The following Hadith is very critical:

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces…))

 A man (who is mentioned in some stories of the Arab tribes) is described as club-footed, and he had an inclined chin, sunken eyes, bulging out cheeks and small shoulders. There was no ugly attribute but he had a share of it, yet he was the leader of his people. While our master Ibn Mas'ood was climbing a tree, the wind blew and his gown was uncovered showing the very thin legs of his. The companions smiled when they saw them, so the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((Do you wonder at Ibn Mas'ood thin legs? By Allah, they will be as high (because of his position in Allah's Sight) as Uhud Mountain on the Day of Resurrection.))

 If only you had the chance to see our master Khaled; He was thin and, short. He was not attractive at all. Men are estimated according to their faith, knowledge, deeds and steadfastness

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces…))

 You have nothing to do with your physical appearance or the way you look like since Allah the Exalted is The One who created you like this. You are appreciated according to your obedience to Allah, steadfastness benevolence, knowledge and good deeds.

What is the value of linage and wealth in Allah's Sight?

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces…))

((Perish the two hands of Abu Lahab (an uncle of the Prophet), and perish he!))

(Al-Masad: 1)

 He is the Prophet's uncle.

((Salman is one of us, O people of the Household of Prophethood.))

 He, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, was referring to Salman Al-Farsi.

((How excellent a slave is Suhayb. Even if he does not fear The Lord he will not disobey Him (even if he does not fear The Lord, his heart will be full of love and glorification for Him enough to prevent him disobeying Him.))

 Our master As-Siddeeq put his hand under Bilal's armpit and said, "This is truly my brother."

 Safwan bin Ummayyah used to torture Bilal, and once our master As-Siddeeq said, "Sell him to me." He said, "Take him. By Allah, if you had paid me one dirham I would have sold him to you." Then As-Siddeeq said, "By Allah, if you had asked me to pay you a thousand dirhams, I would have paid you." He took him, and he put his hand under his armpit to irritate Safwan, saying, "This is truly my brother." Our master Umar used to welcome Bilal from the outskirts of the city whenever he came. This is really incredible! The Commander of the Believers used to go to the outskirts of the city to welcome Bilal the black Ethiopian!! This is the religion; this is our religion!

((Listen (to the man in position of authority) and obey (him) even if he were a slave maimed (and disabled).))

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces…))

 It does not matter whether the house is 100 square meters or 400 square meters, whether is it located in a very humble neighborhood or in a very prestigious neighborhood of Damascus, whether its cladding materials are costly or not, etc.

A story and a moral lesson:

  By Allah! La ilaha ila Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He), once while I was invited to visit Aleppo the host wanted to show me the new neighborhoods of Aleppo. He took me to Shahba' neighborhood, and showed me the mansions there. The villas in Damascus look like cottages compared to the ones there. He pointed to a villa saying that the engineers who built it in such a design came from a far country. As we were walking, I was attracted by very beautiful building which had an Asian design. I paid that visit to Aleppo in 1974 as I remember. My host noticed how I was looking at that building and said, "The marbles used in this building cost the owner about 5 million liras. He paid the price in US$, and the dollar at that time equalized 3 liras. I was told that the owner of that building died when he was 42. He was tall, so when they wanted to put him in his grave, it was not convenient to him; it was shorter than his body. Therefore, the grave digger had to push him inside bending his head. He stayed with a bending head in his grave." Pay attention to this: the owner of that villa slept in his grave with his head bent.
 Dear brother:

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth...))

 There could be a man who owns a car which costs 24 million liras, while the other man owns a pickup truck whose price is 2.00.000 liras. Both vehicles run, and the main thing is that you can move from one place to another by any of them. Whatever you own is considered wealth whether it is a car, a house, a shop, a villa in the resort, etc.

 What does Allah look to in man?

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth, but He looks to your hearts and your deeds.))

 Dear brother, the true believer does not make Allah the Exalted the least watcher whom he cares about. It is said, "The heart is the House of the Lord." Also, it is reported in the Qudusi relic:

((O My servant, you have cleaned your appearance before people for years, why do not you purify your heart before Me at least for an hour?))

 Sometimes a man notices upon entering his house that its paint is old, so he paints it again, he changes the furniture, he washes his car, he dresses up nicely, he beautifies himself, he wears perfume, he shaves and he washes up. He cares about his appearance; his physical appurtenance, about the way he looks like when he dresses up, about his car and about his house.
 Again, as it is mentioned in the following Hadith:

((O My servant, you have cleaned your appearance before people for years, why do not you purify your heart before Me at least for an hour?))

 Purify your heart from hatred, meanness, rancor, envy, arrogance, pride and superiority, because all of these are psychological disorders.

((O My servant, you have cleaned your appearance before people for years, why do not you purify your heart before Me at least for an hour?))

 This Hadith is very important dear brother:

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage...))

 As you know dear brother, there are expensive clothes, so sometimes you meet a person who tells you that his suit costs him 80 thousand liras, the shoes are made by Redfoot and the tie is made out of silk. He may wear very elegant and expensive clothes, yet he speaks in a vulgar way. A man wears very elegant clothes, but he used dirty words while he was talking to another man. Therefore, that man told him, "You should either speak the way you are dressed, or dress up what suits the way you talk." You either talk the way you are dressed (nicely), or you dress up what suits the way you talk; people who talk vulgarly are expected to wear clothes which reflect the way you talk.
 Hence:

((…you have cleaned your appearance before people for years, why do not you purify your heart before Me at least for an hour?))

The disbeliever is a poor person:

 You should know the truth about the worldly life. Bear in mind that the disbeliever is poor:

((Shall We tell you the greatest losers in respect of (their) deeds?* Those whose efforts have been wasted in this life while they thought that they were acquiring good by their deeds!))

(Al-Kahf: 103-104)

 He exerts efforts, works hard and collect wealth. Yet, the most regretful of all people ever is he who lived poor only to die rich.

Spending is useful to man while alive:

 Some people met a young man heading to a bar, so they asked him, "Where are you going?" I would like to tell you what he said literally, "I want to drink wine to my father's soul." His father left him 100 million liras. The father will be asked about the money he used to have. Where did he get it from? Why did not he make use of it? Because he used to be stingy, he lived as a poor man only to die as a rich one. Thus, spending a lira in your life is better than having 100 liras spent after your death.

 I, the poor slave before you, (Dr. Nabulsi is referring to himself), have spent a quarter of a century in Da'awah, and during these years some generous wealthy brother confided their wills to me. I have a folder in which I collected the wills, but I was deeply hurt when I discovered that none of those wills were fulfilled after the death of those who wrote them. Their families were miser even in fulfilling their wills.

 A deceased man left his children three buildings, and each building has four floors. He asked them to give two thousand liras only to the Masajid and scholars, but they did not fulfill his will.
 Dear brother, do not leave yourself at anyone's mercy, because a lira you spend in your life is better than to have 100 liras spent after your death. The inheritors may spend the amount you asked them to spend, but most likely they don't:

((Verily, man (disbeliever) was created very impatient;* Irritable (discontented) when evil touches him;* And niggardly when good touches him;* Except those devoted to Salat (prayers))

(Al-Ma'arij: 19- 22)

 Those who did not have their wills fulfilled after their death did not raise their children properly.

The wealth of the righteous:

 I know a man who wanted to build a Masjid. He didn't take a lira from anyone; he pied the money for the land, the building materials and the furniture. He had children whom he raised properly. He died before the Masjid was finished, but his children paid 4 million liras after his death to finish that Masjid.

 I also know the man who built Masjid Al-Mansour in Midan (a city in Damascus). The story of this man is unique. His grandfather was an honest believer, and he was wealthy enough. He wrote in his will that the land he owned had to be offered to have a Majid build on it (Masjid Al-Mansour in Midan). The eldest son of that good and rich grandfather is not religious, so he didn't care about the will, and he kept the land for himself in order to build a building for trading purposes. This son has a very righteous son, and when he knew about his grandfather's will, he told his father, "If you don't fulfill that will, you won't see me again. I will disappear, so forget about me; you are not my father anymore, nor am I your son anymore." As a result, the father was forced to fulfill his father's will, and he built this Masjid(Al-Mansour). He -the son- denied his father's will, but the grandson forced his father to fulfill the grandfather's will: ((Spending one dirham while you are alive is better than having a hundred spent after your death.))

 The 500, the 50.000 and the 100.000 liras are valuable to you whereas, a man who is on his deathbed does not consider money valuable. No matter how much you give him, money is worthless to him. Hence, while you are young and have good health, you need money badly, so do not be miser even to yourself.

A story mentioned in Masjid An-Nabulsi:

 Yesterday in Friday's lesson at Masjid An-Nabulsi while I was discussing the Ayah in which Almighty Allah says:

((Verily, your Lord knows that you do stand (to pray at night) a little less than two-thirds of the night, or half the night, or a third of the night, and so do a party of those with you, And Allah measures the night and the day.))

(Al-Muzzammil: 20)

 I told the attendants a story that drew some people's attention, and I think that I mentioned it to you before. It is about a well-off man who I believe is a believer and likes to do good deeds. This man wanted to build a Masjid in one of Damascus neighborhoods. He looked for a land and found a suitable one. The owner of that land inherited it few weeks before he met that man. He was a school worker, he had five children and his salary was only 3.000 liras. He was very poor. The man who wanted to build the Masjid negotiated the price with him and he accepted to take 3 million and a half liras. They wrote a cheque for 2 million and he said to him, "You will receive the rest of the money when I get the license from the Ministry of Endowments." Then, he asked, "Why do you need it from the endowment?" He answered, "Because we want to build a Masjid on the land." He said, "Give me the cheque." He took it, tore it into pieces and said, "I have the right more than you to offer the land for the sake of Allah." That worker offered the land for Allah's sake.

 The rich man said, "I have never felt myself inferior, but before that worker." The man who had such a feeling had millions, and he wanted to give the owner of the land two million liras, He saw how a man whose salary was about 3.000 liras, and he had five children, did not want anyone to outrace him to Paradise although the land he inherited was all he owned in this worldly life. He said, "I have the right more than you to offer the land for the sake of Allah." He tore the cheque into pieces and offered the land. An engineer brother was one of those who built the Masjid in the area of Aeyshah River. The Masjid is one of the most elegant Masajid. The land of this Masjid was offered by a man who owned nothing in this worldly life but this land.

 I liked the rich man's comment; he said that he had never felt himself inferior to anyone but to that man at that moment. He felt himself nothing, because:

((One dirham outstrips a thousand.))

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth…))

 The house of the worker might be small which had only one room. Also, he might wear second hand clothes which you do not like. He might lack elegance and many other things, and his food could be very poor; he might eat pasta on one day, and chickpeas on the other. He does not have much food to eat, what kind of food he can eat with the 3.000 liras he ears. Let alone that he has five children:

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth…))

 He did not have luxurious furniture, a living room or luxurious bedrooms. He owned nothing but the land he inherited, and he offered it for the sake of Allah.

((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth, but He looks to your hearts and your deeds.))

 Allah wants man to turn in repentance to Him and to have a submissive, pure, sincere and clean heart.

This slave is the one Allah loves:

 Abdullah Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them, narrates:

((The Messenger of Allah, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said that Dawud, peace be upon him, said to his Lord, "O my Lord! Who is most beloved to You of Your servants, so that I love him for the sake of Your love?" He said, "O Dawud! The most beloved of My servants is the one whose heart and both the palms are pure. He neither wrongs anyone nor does he backbite; mountains can be moved, but not he. He loves Me and My lovers and makes My servants also love Me." Dawud, peace be upon him, said, "O my Lord! You know that I love You and love those who love You. How can I make Your servants love You?" Allah said, "(Through excessive remembrance) remind them of My signs, My torments and My favors (upon them).))

 Pay attention to this, please

(("The most beloved of My servants is the one whose heart and both the palms are pure. He neither wrongs anyone nor does he backbite; mountains can be moved, but not he. He loves Me and My lovers and makes My servants also love Me."))
((Verily, Allah does not look to your faces, to your lineage nor to your wealth, but He looks to your hearts and your deeds.))

 Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.

The closing Du'a:

 In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

 Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, the faithful and the honest. O Allah! Increase us [in Your Blessings] and do not decrease us, honor us and do not humiliate us, give us [from Your Gifts] and do not deprive us, be in favor of us and not be against us, and make us satisfied and be satisfied with us. Peace and blessings upon our Master Muhammad, the illiterate Prophet, his Family and his Companions.